The Stark Truth
by misteeirene
Summary: Summer after 4th year Harry learns that James isn't exactly is father and Lily isn't his mother. Will his newly discovered family be able to help him recover from his violent, abusive childhood? Will he be able to trust again enough to find love? Slash, abuse, rape, underage, mpreg, cutting,
1. Chapter 1

I do not own a Harry Potter or the Avengers...

THERE ARE DELETED SCENES. IF YOU WANT TO READ THEM, THEN GO TO AO3 WHERE ALL MY WORK IS POSTED, INCLUDING DELETED SCENES.

PLEASE READ::::: So, I was really on the fence with posting this. After I wrote this I started reading some hp/avengers crossovers and I saw that another amazing fic had Harry finding out that Tony was his father in a similar manor. I debated on wether or not I should trash it and try something else, but since this fic is nothing like the other one I figured if would be alright. If the author has an issue I will gladly remove it... The only thing similar to her's is the journal and paternity test.

I also don't know much about the Avengers and Marvel so I'm not sure I will be able to portray them good enough, so there is a chance that this fic won't be completed...but I will try :)

ANY SUGGESTIONS FROM YOU READERS OR HELP WILL BE APPRECIATED..

This will be slash though I'm not sure who Harry will be paired with.

Please review and let me know if I should continue.

***HP

Vernon grabbed the small teen by the throat and slammed him painfully against the wall. He smirked when the boy's legs thrashed about trying to reach the ground so he could relieve the pressure from around his skinny neck and get some much needed oxygen into his lungs.

"With any luck, this will be the last night I will have to suffer seeing your disgusting face," Vernon snarled, spit flying into the boy's bluing face.

Harry was frantically pulling at his uncle's beefy fingers and scratching at his arm. He was desperate for oxygen and bright spots were bursting before his eyes. If he didn't get oxygen in the next few seconds, then he was going to pass out or possibly die. If he had to choose, then he would choose death. He was tired of living the nightmare that his life was and he just wanted it all to end.

With a grunt, Vernon easily tossed the boy across the room and into the opposite wall, grinning when he heard a sickening crack.

Harry didn't make a sound when his head connected hard with the wall or when his right arm snapped from him landing on it wrong. This wasn't the first time his arm had been broken...hell, it wasn't even the fifth time. Pain was something he had been intimately familiar with since he was fifteen months old.

Vernon stood over his trembling nephew who was clutching his limp right arm to his chest while softly whimpering. "I bet you're wondering why we brought you to America the second you returned from that freak school of yours?"

Harry was very curious as to why they had come to New York City, but he knew better than to ask questions. He learned from a very young age that asking questions only earned you a shit load of pain. The second he exited the barrier from Platform 9 3/4's, his uncle had ordered him to release Hedwig from her cage then tossed him into the car next to his obese cousin and growled at him to not make a sound. Then instead of driving to Surrey, he drove to the airport where they then boarded a plain for New York City. They were currently in a three bedroom room in a very upscale hotel in Manhattan.

"Freak, you answer me when I ask you a question," Vernon snarled kicking the boy in his already broken arm as hard as he could.

Harry tried not to cry out, but the pain was too great. "Yes uncle Vernon," Harry whimpered voice barely above a whisper. He never looked up at his uncle, knowing better than to make eye contact with the large man. He may be a fourteen, almost fifteen year old wizard, but he was terrified of his uncle. He was more scared of his uncle than he was of Voldemort. Voldemort just wanted him dead, his uncle wanted to torture him, maim him, break him and rape him. He welcomed death over what his uncle liked to do to him.

Vernon grinned evilly down at his nephew. "We are here in New York so I can make a shit load of money off your worthless hide."

Harry paled, feeling like he was going to pass out. His uncle was finally going to do what he had been threatening since he was six years old; Vernon was selling him into child prostitution.

Vernon threw his head back laughing at the fear in his young nephew's eyes. "As tempting as that sounds and as much as I would love knowing that you would spend the rest of your life bent over being fucked by countless men, I have found a way to make even more money off of you, and if you're lucky, you will be living in the lap of luxury."

Vernon walked to the bed dropping his pants as he went. Sitting down naked from the waste down, he spread his legs and took his limp penis into his hand. "Get over here and start sucking, and if you're good maybe I will tell you a story."

Trying to hide the disgust from his face, Harry crawled on his knees and settled himself between his uncles spread thighs. With his trembling left hand, he grasped his uncle's penis and slowly lowered his head.

Impatient, Vernon grabbed a fistful of raven hair and forced his nephews head down and onto his cock. "If I feel one tooth on my cock, I will rip it out of your gum and shove it down your throat. You would think after eight years of cock sucking you would be a pro at it. You're better than you aunt at least, I'll give you that much. I can't get rough with her and she bitches for a month if I cum down her throat."

Harry started licking and sucking at his uncles hardening cock mindful of his teeth and going nice and slow, just how his uncle liked it. Vernon loved to be sucked and he wanted it to last as long as possible, sometimes even an hour or longer. As much as Harry hated sucking his uncle, he would prefer that over his uncle fucking him. He always tried to do a good job so his uncle would come in his mouth instead of his ass. Very rarely could his uncle go two rounds, so if he came in his mouth, than he was safe from his uncle raping him that night.

Vernon closed his eyes moaning, he may bitch to his nephew that he was bad at this, but Harry was an amazing little cock sucker. "I'm going to miss this freak," he said reaching out and caressing his nephews pale cheek. He knew how much his nephew hated it when he touched him, especially in a loving manner. "I'm going miss shoving my cock down your throat and deep inside your tight little ass. This is our last night together freak, and I'm going to use you until you can't talk or walk."

Vernon's chuckled when he felt his nephews tears land on his groin. "Don't worry, my little freak, I took some blue pills that are going to keep me going all night long." Vernon grabbed a few pillows and laid back, resting his head on them so he could watch as his nephew's head bobbed up and down over his large belly.

"Three months back," Vernon started, "I got the promotion of a lifetime, but it meant having to move to the USA, California to be exact. As your aunt was packing, she came across a key to a forgotten storage shed that we had opened after your worthless parents were killed and we got stuck with you and a shitload of their useless, freakish stuff. As we were sorting through and trashing everything, I came across a very interesting journal of your mothers."

Vernon growled and forcefully thrust his cock up into his nephews mouth and down his throat. "I didn't give you permission to stop sucking. If you want, I can fuck you now instead of telling you what was so interesting about your mother's journal."

Harry quickly resumed sucking not wanting his uncle to fuck him, but also very interested in his mothers journal. He didn't know much about his mom and he had nothing that belonged to her. Remus and Sirius had told him a lot about his dad and he had his dad's cloak, but he had nothing that once belonged to his mom.

Vernon smirked down at his nephews bobbing head. "Very good, my little freak," he chuckled. "Now, where was I? Right, your mom's journal was very interesting because it documented her troubles in conceiving a child. At first they thought there was something wrong with your father, but after extensive testing, they found that your perfect mother was unable to get pregnant and bring another freak into the world. Your aunt was thrilled when she learned that her perfect sister had failed at something that she could do. Your mother was nothing but a worthless hole for your father to fuck."

Vernon grabbed a fistful of Harry's hair and yanked him off his cock. "What did I say about teeth, boy?" he bellowed, then punched him hard on the side of the face. "That's your last warning, freak."

Harry shook his head trying to clear it, that punch had disoriented him and made his vision go dark.

"Now as I was saying," Vernon continued when his nephew resumed sucking him. "Your good for nothing mother couldn't get pregnant, but with the war going on your father was afraid that he was going to die before producing an heir. Now he's the really disgusting part," Vernon chuckled darkly. "It seems your lot are even bigger, disgusting freaks than what I originally thought. Did you know that men in your world can get pregnant? "

Harry almost chocked on his uncle's cock. He had never been told that wizards could get pregnant. Did that mean that James's was his mom and not his dad?

"Keep sucking," Vernon growled. "Your father, or should I say mother," Vernon made a gagging noise. "Went to a muggle bar one night and hooked up with a stranger. Your father took it up the ass all night long with this random bloke so he could get pregnant with you."

Harry couldn't believe what he was hearing. His dad was actually his mom, but how was that even possible? He had a million questions, but he knew better than to ask his uncle. He desperately wanted to get his hands on his mom's journal, there was no way that this absurd story could be true. Then again, uncle Vernon wasn't the type to come up with such a far fetched story.

"Lucky for us," Vernon groaned now thrusting up into his nephews warm mouth. He had wanted this to last longer, but he hadn't had his nephew's wonderful mouth since last July and the freak was practically sucking the cum out of his dick. "Your father got the name of the muggle he tricked into getting him up the duff and your so called mother wrote it down in her journal. Tomorrow we will go to where your real father lives and sell you back to him for a hefty price. It seems this man is very rich and famous and I'm sure he will do anything to keep his dirty little secret from being broadcast on every tv station and in every newspaper. Of course we can't let him know that it was a guy he got pregnant, but luckily it seems your real father will screw anything with a hole, so we will just tell him it was your mother that he knocked up; he will never know the difference."

Vernon grabbed the sides of Harry's head and roughly pulled his head down while he shoved his cock down his throat and came with a roar. After he recovered from his orgasm, he stood up and kicked his nephew in the side. "You fucking used your teeth, you know the punishment for that."

Keeping his broken arm in tight, Harry stripped out of his clothes and turned to the wall placing only his non broken hand on it.

Vernon had removed the belt from his pants and stood patiently waiting for his nephew to assume the position. For a boy, his little freak of a nephew had a beautiful, almost feminine figure, and just seeing him standing there naked and trembling had him getting hard all over again. He was going to miss using the boy's body, but the money was too good to pass up. With the money he was going to demand, he could buy a little boy prostitute every night if he wanted to. His wife knew of his dark side, but she didn't care as long as he didn't demand her to do such degrading and filthy things. He liked to dominate and hurt his young male toys, and Harry was his first and most favorite.

The first time he had shoved his meat down Harry's throat the boy was only six years old. He had begged Petunia to suck him, and when she flat out refused and stormed out of the house, he pulled his nephew out from his cupboard and ordered him to lick at the tip of his penis. It only took a few minutes before he was shoving himself down the small tight throat and experiencing the best orgasm of his life. After that things progressed quickly and it wasn't long before he had his nephew bent over the arm of the couch screaming as he tore through his small ass.

"Thirty lashes I think will do for your disobedience and five more for each time you scream, so you better keep your damn mouth shut."

Harry sucked his bottom lip between his teeth and bit down on it hard, nodding his head. Five or ten lashes he could easily keep quiet for, but thirty was going to be impossible. He was going to be a ripped up, bloody mess when his uncle was finished with him.

Vernon ran his fingers over his nephews bloodied back, pressing his nails into the long gashes. "Forty lashes," he smirked. "I warned you not to make a sound." Vernon let his bloodied finger slip down and between his nephew's tight ass cheeks. Without warning, he jammed two of his fingers into his nephew's perfectly tight hole, chuckling when the force sent his nephews's face slamming into the wall.

Harry swallowed his scream knowing that it would only earn him more lashes. He was in so much pain from the beating that he was literally blinded from it. His uncle was being extremely rough with him, normally he was only this bad when he was mad and taking it out on him.

"Hands and knees," Vernon ordered in a gruff voice. "Brace yourself, there will be no perpetration."

Harry painfully dropped to his knees, but he could only place his left hand on the ground. His uncle very rarely prepared him so he wasn't expecting it this time. Personally, he preferred it that way. Perpetration felt too personal, caring; he just wanted his uncle to get it over with even if it hurt worse.

Harry hung his head and bit into his left arm, if he made a sound when his uncle entered him then he was going to be five times rougher on him.

Vernon lined his dry cock up with his nephew's hole and thrust in to the hilt as hard as he could. He was a bit disappointed when the freak didn't make a sound, but then he saw the blood running down his arm from where he had bit into it. "Into biting now are we? I can help with that." Vernon leaned forward and bit his nephew hard enough on the shoulder that his teeth broke through the delicate skin and blood flooded his mouth. He continued to bite him as he fucked him hard and fast and didn't stop until he was emptying himself deep in his nephews bowels.

***HP

Harry was laying in a fetal position in the bathtub crying as scolding hot water rained down on his sore and broken body. All night his uncle tortured him, raping him countless times and forcing him to suck his cock. It was now early morning and after his family finished pigging out at the hotel's breakfast buffet, they were going to go to the mans house that was supposedly his biological father. He was never given time to process what his uncle had told him, but he found everything hard to believe. Why had he never heard that a wizard could get pregnant? The thought of his uncle getting him pregnant had him scrambling out of the tub and vomiting into the toilet.

Harry shakily got to his feet and started drying off using only one hand. His broken arm was in a bad way and even the smallest movement sent pain shooting throughout it. His uncle really worked him over last night and he had countless bruises on his face as proof. He didn't know how his uncle was going to explain his condition, but he was sure that the man had a plan. He didn't want to get his hopes up that this mystery man was his father, but he was positive that if his uncle didn't get his money that he was either going to sell him to some pimp or just kill him. Even if this man was his father, what made his uncle think that he would even want him?

"Boy!" his aunt shrieked from the other side of the bathroom door. "I have some clothes for you, can't have you meeting your sperm donor wearing those disgusting rags."

Harry opened the door never looking up at his aunt, not even when he heard her gasp.

"Dammit," Petunia cursed, "he knew we were taking you to meet your father. Get dressed and I will get you some pain pills." Petunia walked away shaking her head, her husband left their nephew looking like he had been hit by a truck. She told him not to leave a mark on the boy last night.

Harry was surprised to find a pair of jeans, long sleeved black shirt, red hoody and cheap sneakers that were all in his size. Other than his school uniform, he had only ever worn his cousin's large handy down clothes and worn out sneakers. As quickly as he could, he dressed and brushed his long hair. He had been growing his hair out for the past year and it now came to the bottom of his shoulder blades. With the added weight, his hair no longer stuck out in every direction, but fell softly down his back with a slight curl at the ends. He had also gotten his eyes corrected last year while in Hogsmeade. Hermione had suggested after the first task that it might be smarter to get his eyes fixed so the glasses wouldn't get in the way or them getting broken and leaving him blind and defenseless.

Looking in the mirror Harry cringed at the image looking back at him. He was too pale, his emerald eyes looked dead with big dark circles under them, and a large bruise took up most of the right side of his face. Tilting his head back, he could see a handprint bruise wrapping around his neck the size of his uncle's hand. Under his shirt his back was ripped to shreds and his right arm was broken, probably in more than one place. He looked like hell and he was going to meet the man that could possibly be his father. There was no way some rich man would want him, even if it turned out that he was his biological son.

"Here," Petunia snarled thrusting two pills under her nephew's nose. "We leave in five minutes so hurry it the hell up. You keep your head down and don't say a word, understand?"

Harry nodded his head, not looking his aunt in the eye.

"I don't like you and I never did, but you don't deserve what your uncle puts you through. If your father doesn't take you in then Vernon is only going to get a whole lot worse. You better pray that he will take you in and pay the money that your uncle will be demanding. If not, I suggest you run...run and hide on the streets of New York and don't ever allow your lot to return you to us. I won't stop your uncle...even if he looses it and beats you to death. I just want to be rid of you and I don't care how your uncle goes about doing it.

Harry didn't say anything, he just popped the pills into his mouth and swallowed them down. His aunt didn't normally give him anything for the pain and he was grateful that she did this time. Unfortunately, he was taking them on an empty stomach and that always caused him to feel sick and nauseous. His aunt's little speech didn't bother him either, she had been spewing her hate to him for as far back as he could remember.

"Let's go, the taxi is here and Vernon has already loaded your trunk." Petunia snapped.

*** HP

"May I help you?" the lady behind the desk at Stark Tower asked, eyeing the very large man in front of her

"Yes, I'm here to see Mr. Stark," Vernon announced loudly, puffing out his chest and trying to look important.

"I'm sorry, but Mr. Stark is away on business, did you have an appointment?"

"I don't need an appointment, and I demand to see Mr. Stark...now!" Vernon yelled, spit flying from his mouth.

Harry backed away from his uncle, recognizing the signs of him losing his temper. When his uncle lost his temper, he normally ended up being beat to unconsciousness. After last night, he was feeling incredibly jumpy around the man. If his uncle didn't get to see Mr. Stark, then he was going to take it out on him and he honestly felt like he wouldn't survive the next encounter.

The secretary subtly pressed a button under her desk calling for security back up. "I'm really sorry, sir, but Mr. Stark is out of the country on business and isn't expected back until next week. If you leave your name, number and business with Mr. Stark, I will have his personal assistant contact you to set up the first available appointment.

Harry jumped when his uncle raised his beefy fist and slammed it down on the desk.

"I have come all the way from England to bring Tony Stark his bastard son and I will not leave until I have spoken to somebody." Vernon roared.

The secretary looked between the two boys that were accompanying the man. The larger boy was obviously the rude man's son, he was just as fat and just as piggy looking as the man. The other boy was small at only about 5'3 and looked to be in desperate need of some food; he was too skinny. She couldn't see his face because he was wearing a hoody with the hood up, which she found strange since it was June and at least eighty degrees outside.

"Is there a problem here?"

Vernon turned his glare to the security guard that had just approached and asked the question. Grabbing his nephew by his broken arm, he yanked him roughly to his chest. "This here is my nephew and the biological son of Tony Stark, if I don't get to talk to somebody in the next five minutes, I will go to the press and tell them how Mr. Stark is a dead beat dad that abandoned a pregnant woman and his unborn child. I suggest you get Stark on the phone and explain the situation to him.

Harry cried out and tears filled his eyes when his uncle grabbed him by his badly broken arm.

"Look Mr., we get someone here at least once a week claiming to be Tony Stark's long lost son or daughter all so they can get their hands on his money. Just leave your name and number and we will pass your information to Mrs. Potts when she returns." The security guard placed his hand on his gun, not so subtly threatening the irate man.

Harry started to tremble under the weight of his uncle's hands on his shoulders. If they walked out of here without seeing someone or talking to Tony Stark, then uncle Vernon was going to make last night look like child's play. Petunia's suggestion of running was starting to look like an excellent idea, except the pain pills had him feeling sick and he was weak from lack of food. He tried to eat in the Great Hall before leaving for the Hogwarts Express, but he was too scared about coming home to be able to eat. He was also still feeling the effects from the last task and Voldemort's resurrection. Voldemort had held him under three crucio's and his limbs still had an occasional twitch to them.

"I will not leave my name and number so that rich bastard can just blow me off. Get that Potts lady here or Stark on the phone, but I'm not leaving until I have talked to somebody. I have raised this little shit since he was fifteen months old, I clothed him, fed him, put a roof over his head and I refuse to look after the ungrateful freak for one more day." Vernon roared now drawing a crowd of people to him. Vernon wrapped his large hand around Harry's broken arm giving it a hard squeeze. "Petunia, dial the local news station for me, I'm sure they will be very interested in hearing our story, maybe that will get the mighty Tony Stark's attention."

The force of his uncle's grip was causing the broken bones in Harry's arm to grind together, and the pain was so excruciating that it dropped Harry to his knees. Dropping his head, he bit into the side of his cheek to keep from crying in front of the people that were now gathered around.

The security guard went to grab the man that was obviously hurting the small boy, when a hand reached out and grabbed his, stopping him.

"I will handle this, Willis," Bruce said glaring at the loud disgusting man that was manhandling the small boy. He had been in the lobby when the group first entered demanding to speak with Tony. Paternity claims were common with Tony, especially given his past exploits and immense fortune. They even kept a copy of his DNA on record for such occasions. So far out of the hundreds of claims, not a single one had proved to be positive. Tony may be hot headed and wreckless, but he was very good at not getting himself caught in a situation where he was going to have to pay child support to some money hungry woman.

"If you would kindly remove your hand from the boy, I will escort you to my lab where I will run a paternity test on the child. If he turns out to be Mr. Stark's son then I will contact his personal assistant and she will get in contact with Stark." Bruce snarled, the other guy pushing to get out and teach this man how to properly treat a child. He couldn't see the boy's face, but there was something about him...something that made him want to protect the boy.

Vernon snorted, "I will let you run your tests, but I'm telling you, this boy is Stark 's son."

"Then you shouldn't have a problem with the tests," Bruce snapped. "Willis, please escort them to my lab while I help the boy up and with his trunk."

Vernon grinned, roughly thrusting the boy's broken arm away from him. Smirking at the security guard, Vernon and his family followed the guard to the waiting elevator.

Harry swallowed his scream and pulled his arm tight to his chest. On top of the broken arm, it now felt like his uncle ripped his shoulder out of the socket.

"Hey kid, you alright? " Bruce asked kneeling down to the boy. He thought he heard something pop in the boy's shoulder, but he never made a sound indicating that he was in pain.

Harry nodded his head, unable to verbally answer the kind man. He didn't know how much more he could take before passing out.

"Yeah, why don't I believe you," Bruce chuckled. "The names Dr. Bruce Banner, but you can call me Bruce. What's your name?"

"H-Harry," Harry answered struggling to his feet. "Harry Potter."

"Well, Harry Potter, after we see to this DNA test, I'm going to have a look at that arm. By the way you're holding it, I would guess that it is broken and dislocated."

"It's fine, sir, honestly," Harry quickly said, knowing that it would piss his uncle off if anyone made a fuss over him. "I just tripped, that's all."

"Sure kid, but I'm still going to look at it." Bruce tried to get a good look at the boy, but he kept his head turned away from him and his hood up. "Let's get to my lab before that whale of an uncle of yours destroys it." Bruce took the boy's trunk and easily lifted it with one hand signaling the boy to follow him towards the elevator.

"Jarvis," Bruce called once the elevator doors were closed. "Have Clint meet me in my lab, I have a feeling I will be needing assistance with this group."

"Contacting him now, Dr. Banner," Jarvis answered, making Harry jump and look around.

Bruce chuckled, "Jarvis scared the hell out of me too the first time I heard him. He is an invention of Tony Stark's, the man may be a pain in the ass, but he's a damn genius. Jarvis stands for, JUST A RATHER VERY INTELLIGENT SYSTEM, Tony invented the AI to be a hyped out butler that can basically do anything. Do you know anything about Tony Stark?," Bruce asked curiously.

Harry shook his head, "no, sir," he answered softly.

"Please, just call me Bruce," Bruce chuckled, a bit surprised that the boy had never heard of Tony. Tony was famous all over the world, not just America, and now because of Ironman, Tony was considered a superhero.

"Tony Stark is many things, a billionaire, a genius, an engineer, a businessman, an industrialist, a playboy extraordinaire, a hero, a cocky little shit, the biggest pain in the ass with a mouth that won't quit," Bruce smiled when he got a soft giggle from the boy. "All things considered, Tony is a good guy, and if you are his son, he will look after you." Bruce was hoping that this boy was Tony's, he would hate to send him off with that awful man. He was almost positive that the uncle was the cause of the boy's broken arm.

"Tell me, do you think that Tony is your father?" Bruce asked, trying but still failing at getting a look at the boy.

Harry shrugged his shoulders, but cried out when pain lanced through his right shoulder and down his arm.

"Hey, don't move that arm," Bruce warned reaching out to help steady the boy. "Maybe we should check this out before running the DNA test."

"No please," Harry begged. "Let's get the DNA test out of the way first. My uncle would..."

"Blow a gasket if we didn't run the DNA test first? Yeah, I got that the man is a bully, but I'm pretty sure that I could handle myself against him." Bruce smirked, knowing that the other guy was just waiting to put the fat man in his place. "But if it makes you feel better, we will run the DNA and while we are waiting on the results, I will X-ray that arm and see about patching it up. I'm not a medical doctor, but I had enough training in that field to be able help you."

"Thank you," Harry said, hoping to at least get his arm set before the results came back negative and his uncle took it out on him. Bruce seemed like a really nice guy, maybe he would know somewhere where he could hide from his uncle.

"So, do you think Tony is your father?" Bruce asked again.

"Uncle Vernon only told me about finding my mother's journal last night. He said that she named him as my biological father. He said that she was having trouble getting pregnant by my dad and she hooked up with Mr. Stark one night at a pub."

Bruce snorted, "that sounds like Tony, never able to turn a pretty lady away."

"I'm sorry for all of this," Harry said shyly. "My uncle is a bit of..."

"An ass," Bruce interrupted with a bit of a growl to his voice. "Don't worry about it, Harry, your uncle isn't the first to bring a kid by claiming to be Tony's."

"Where they...Tony's?"

Bruce shook his head no. "Tony is not married and as far as we know, he has no kids. This is our stop," Bruce said when the elevator came to a stop. When the doors opened, Bruce wasn't surprised to find Clint casually leaning against the wall waiting for him.

"Harry, this is Clint Barton, he lives here at Stark Tower along with myself and a few others. Clint, this is Harry Potter, his uncle brought him by claiming that Tony is his father. We are headed to my lab to run the DNA, but I would like for you to keep an eye on his uncle, the man has some serious anger issues."

Clint sighed, "another one huh, what does this make, number three hundred and two?"

Harry cringed, stepping slightly behind Bruce.

"Sorry, kid," Clint said when he saw that he scared the boy. "I didn't mean anything bad by it, just making an observation. Everyone wants a piece of Stark, and god knows he makes it too easy for them."

"Come on, let's not keep your uncle waiting," Bruce said leading the way to his lab. His lab was the reason Tony was able to convince him to move into Stark Tower. All the equipment was state of the art and it must of cost Tony a fortune to build.

"About damn time you got here," Vernon barked, glaring at his nephew. "I don't have all day, run the damn test so I can rid myself of the freak."

"Charming," Clint sneered eyeing up the fattest man that he had ever had the displeasure of meeting. "Now I can see why you called for me."

Bruce childishly rolled his eyes. "Ok, Harry, because I don't think your uncle will be happy unless there is indisputable proof, we are going to run this test two ways. First I'm going to wipe the inside of your mouth with a swab, and then second, I'm going to draw some blood."

"Blood never lies," Vernon boomed loudly, making Harry jump.

Clint didn't miss how skittish the boy was around his uncle, he also didn't miss how the boy never made eye contact or lifted his head. Because of the hood, he had yet to see what the boy looked like. He found it strange that he was wearing something so heavy when it was so hot out today.

"Dad, I'm hungry," Dudley whined. "How long is this going to take?"

Clint raised his eyebrows shaking his head. "Kid, you're so big..."

"Clint that's enough," Bruce said not wanting to set the man off, or bust out laughing in front of him. Honestly, the boy was massive, he didn't think he had ever seen a kid that big before. "It will take a while before we get the results back, so after I finish with this I will order some pizza and you can eat it in the conference room."

"Leave so you can tamper with the results, I don't think so," Vernon growled. "I'm not leaving this room until the tests are done and the results are read."

"Fine," Bruce snarled, feeling his blood pressure spike. "I was just trying to be nice. It's going to be at least two hours before the results are back and I didn't want to listen to your son whine the entire time."

"Daaaad," Dudley whined in a voice that had even the other guy cringing. "I want pizza with extra cheese and extra bacon. I don't want to wait two hours... I want it now! ... I want it now!"

"Oh for the love of... Feed the pig before I put an arrow through his head. There is no way I can listed to that shit for two hours." Clint snapped.

Bruce pinched the bridge of his nose trying to remain calm. "How about I order the pizza and your wife and the boys can go to the conference room to eat. You can remain here in my lab staring at my equipment and acting like you know what the hell you're doing."

"Fine," Vernon snarled, face turning purple. "But the freak remains here. He had a huge breakfast not even an hour ago and I don't want him causing any trouble."

"The only ones that are causing trouble are you and your fat ass son," Clint sneered advancing on Vernon. He was excellent at reading people and he could tell that the man was lying. Harry looked like he hadn't had a decent meal in years.

"Vernon," Petunia spoke up for the first time. "While we are waiting on the results, I will take Dudley across the street for something to eat. I saw the cutest little cafe there and I'm sure they will have something that our Dudders would love."

"But mooom, I want pizza," Dudley cried, eyes filling up with fake tears.

"Dudders dear," Petunia said trying to calm her perfectly perfect son down. "Cafe's like that normally have the best deserts and you can pick out whatever you like, then for tonight, I will order you pizza for dinner."

Dudley's piggy little eyes lit up. "Can I have two or three deserts?"

"Of course you can, my son," Vernon said proudly. "You"re a growing young man after all, you can have as many deserts you can eat."

"If he grows any more, we are going to have to rub him down in butter to get his fat ass through the door," Clint mumbled under his breath.

Harry wanted to laugh, never before had anyone talked to his uncle Vernon and Dudley the way that these two were. He really liked them, and for the first time he was really wishing that this Tony Stark guy was his father. He still hadn't had time to process everything so he wasn't sure how he felt. He didn't like the idea of losing Lily as his mother, but the thought of finding a father that was still alive...well, he was scared to get his hopes up. The man probably wouldn't want someone as pathetic and dirty as him as his son anyway.

"Now that the temper tantrum has been averted," Bruce said glaring at Vernon and Dudley. "Harry, I know it's going to hurt your arm, but I'm going to need you to remove your hoody."

Harry nodded his head, he figured he would have to when Bruce mentioned blood test. Taking a deep breath, he quickly pulled the hoody over his head and gently worked it off his dislocated shoulder and down his broken arm. The pain was horrific, but at least he was able to keep from crying out. His uncle loved knowing that he left his nephew hurting and he wasn't going to give the man the satisfaction of seeing him in pain. Biting the inside of his cheek, he dropped the hoody on the chair then raised his head, not making eye contact with anyone.

Clint gasped, shocked and disgusted at what he was seeing. "Shit, kid, what the hell happened to you?" He had suffered enough broken and dislocated arms to be able to recognize the signs of one, but it was his face that he couldn't stop looking at. It looked like someone had taken a baseball bat to the side of it.

"Ran his mouth, he did." Vernon growled. "Couldn't keep his damn mouth shut last night so a couple of thugs put him in his place."

Clint whirled around facing the boy's uncle. "You didn't even take him to the hospital," he raged. "The boy is in pain and that arm is badly broken, and you didn't even take him to get patched up." He didn't believe for one minute that the kid ran his mouth. The kid had hardly said a word, there was no way he was running his mouth to some thugs.

"The freak got what he had coming to him. I wasn't going to waste my hard earned money on him. If he wants to start trouble, then he has to suffer the consequences." Vernon sneered.

Bruce was staring at the boy too, but it wasn't because of the horrific bruises. No, Bruce was staring because he was seeing an identical version of a young Tony Stark. There was no way that this kid wasn't Tony's. There was some differences like his higher cheek bones, eye color and feminine features, but this kid was a mini Tony Stark.

"Jarvis," Bruce called out. "Call Pepper and tell her I need her down here now. I don't care if she is in the middle of a meeting, she needs to get here as soon as possible."

"Mrs. Potts will be here in fifteen minutes," Jarvis said.

"Thank you, Jarvis," Bruce smiled at Harry. "Harry, please take a seat here," he said pointing to a small chair next to his lab table. "This will only take a minute or two and then I will see to your arm."

"You will do no such thing!," Vernon bellowed advancing on the doctor. "The boy got what he deserved and I won't allow you to go pampering him like some mamby pamby fairy boy."

"I have had enough of you!" Bruce growled in a voice that didn't sound completely human and his eyes bleeding green.

Vernon stumbled backwards almost falling on his overly large ass.

"Whoa, easy there, big guy," Clint said grabbing Bruce by the shoulder and trying to keep the other guy from making an appearance. Clint spun on Vernon who was getting ready to open his mouth. "Back up and keep your damn mouth shut. Believe me, you don't want to piss the good doctor off and get introduced to the other guy."

Vernon wisely took his advise and drug his wife and son to the opposite side of the room.

Bruce closed his eyes, taking in deep breaths. "Sorry about that, Harry," he said, giving the boy a reassuring smile. He was surprised to find that the kid wasn't looking at him in fear, just curiosity and understanding.

"Straighten your arm and make a fist, I promise this won't hurt." Bruce said kindly.

"Could... Could you please help me roll up my sleeve?" Harry asked shyly.

"I got it," Clint offered seeing that Bruce was readying the syringe. Keeping his eye on the uncle, Clint rolled up the boy's sleeve, growling at the bruises and large bite mark that littered the thin arm. "I take it that these came from your encounter with the thugs?"

Harry didn't say anything, just jerkily nodded his head. He knew better than to say anything, his uncle would flay him alive the second they got back to the hotel room.

"That handprint bruise around your neck that is suspiciously the same size as your uncle's hand, also came from your thug run in?" Clint asked, knowing the kid was going to say yes even though it was obvious to him that his uncle was responsible for the injuries.

Again Harry just nodded his head keeping his eyes averted from the man.

"You're going to need a tetanus shot for that bite," Bruce warned. "The human mouth is full of bacteria."

Harry cringed not liking the idea of getting more needles.

Bruce knotted the tourniquet and started looking for a good vein. "Harry, when was the last time you had something to drink?"

"Uhm, this morning." Harry answered, but it came out sounding more like a question. He hadn't had anything to drink since the leaving feast. "Is there something wrong?"

Bruce shook his head no. "When you're dehydrated, it's just harder to get a vein. You may say that you had something to drink this morning, but your body is telling me different."

"Sorry," Harry muttered,

"It's alright, I found a decent vein, but I will get you something to eat and drink when I'm done. I don't want you to pass out on me, and I'm afraid it's going to hurt considerably when I pop that shoulder back in place." Bruce said, looking at the boy in sympathy.

Bruce quickly drew the blood and swabbed the inside of the boy's mouth. He didn't need for the results to come back to know that this kid was a Stark. Tony was in for a big surprise when he came back from his conference in France. Daddy Tony was a truly terrifying thought.

Pepper walked into the room and took one look at the boy and cursed. "Shit, it's finally happened, hasn't it?"

Bruce shook his head chuckling. "I'm running the tests now, but..."

"This kid is obviously Tony's," Pepper finished eyeing the boy and cataloging his numerous injuries. "I will contact Tony and give him a heads up. I want pictures of all his injuries and the name of the person responsible for them."

Pepper turned to the Dursley's looking them over, especially Petunia. There was no way in hell that Tony would sleep with her, not even if he was dead drunk. "How are you related to the child?"

Vernon puffed out his chest. "The freak is my wife's nephew, he was left on our doorstep when he was fifteen months old after his parents were killed in a car accident."

"Drunk driving," Petunia added, sneering at Harry and just daring him to say something.

Harry had to bite his tongue to keep from saying anything. He hated when people talked bad about his parents, but there was nothing he could say without breaking the statue of secrecy.

"You call him a freak one more time, and you're going to be leaving here in more than one piece," Clint threatened, advancing on Vernon hand resting on the handle of his knife.

"Enough," Pepper sighed. "You three," she said pointing to the boy's relatives. "Come with me so we can discuss custody of the child." She could tell by the greedy look in their eyes that this was going to cost Tony a pretty penny; not that it would make a dent in his bank account.

"Finally, someone who knows how to treat a person of importance." Vernon said, holding his hand out to the beautiful red haired lady. "Vernon Dursley, I have been looking after the fre... the boy for the past thirteen years."

Pepper looked at the large sweaty hand failing at her effort at not showing how disgusted she was. There was something about this man that made her skin crawl. She didn't have to be a genius to tell that there was something not right between the boy and his uncle. There were all kinds of warning bells going off in her head and they were all directed at this Vernon Dursley character.

Pepper quickly shook the offered hand and released it as fast as she could, subtly wiping her hand on the back of her skirt. "Pepper Potts, CEO of Stark Industries and basically Tony's keeper. Please follow me, we have a lot to discuss."

"The results aren't back yet," Petunia pointed out.

Pepper looked at the boy that looked so much like Tony at that age that it was scary. "There's no need to wait for the results, I can tell just by looking at him that Tony fathered him. We will wait for the results though before signing any papers. This way we will have everything hashed out and papers drawn by the time the results are ready, that way you and your family can be on your way and get to enjoy a nice night in the city." Pepper just wanted these people gone, being in their presence was making her feel dirty.

"Should I go with her?" Clint asked watching as Pepper led those vile people from the lab.

"Pepper can handle herself," Bruce chuckled. "I'm going to need your help putting Harry's shoulder back in place."

***HP

Bruce looked at the young boy who was fiddling with the other half of his sandwich. He wished that he would eat more, but he could tell that if Harry took another bite then there was a good chance he was going to get sick. "You don't have to force yourself to eat anymore,"

"Sorry," Harry grimaced. His eyes wanted to finish the sandwich, but his stomach wouldn't allow him. "I'm just not a very big eater."

"Can't imagine there is much food in the house with those two scarfing everything down." Clint joked, trying to get a smile out the boy.

Harry laughed softly. "Luckily I go to a boarding school in Scotland from September till June. I only have to put up with them for a few months in the summer."

"Boarding school, huh, how do you like that?" Bruce asked, getting the supplies ready that he would need to set Harry's arm after the X-ray.

"It's alright," Harry answered. "It's not what I thought it would be when I first heard about it, but I have a couple of good friends. Besides, it gets me away from my relatives." Even though Hogwarts originally felt like home to him, there were times that he wished that he had never received his acceptance letter. The castle herself may be magnificent, but no so much the people residing inside. He was tired of trying to be someone that he wasn't. He wasn't the brave hero that everyone expected and he tried to live up to. He didn't want the attention and fame, he just wanted to make a few good friends, have some fun then graduate and find a job. He was tired of always being in danger and if he had his way he would never return.

"Can't beat that perk," Clint chuckled. "Honestly, I don't think I have ever met anyone like your uncle, the man is vile."

"You have no idea," Harry whispered, not expecting the archer to hear him, but Clint had excellent hearing.

Clint and Bruce exchanged looks, both suspecting that the boy had been severely abused by his uncle.

Bruce sighed, he didn't want to hurt the boy, but they couldn't put off setting that shoulder any longer. He wanted to set it right away, but Harry wouldn't allow it until after the tests. "Harry, I need you to remove your shirt so I can see what's going on with your shoulder."

Harry paled, he couldn't let them see his back. "Why, why do I have to take off my shirt?" he asked, getting to his feet and backing away.

"Hey, relax, Harry." Bruce said holding up his hands. " I need to see your shoulder in order to pop it back in place. I will also need your shirt off in order to cast your arm."

Harry frantically shook his head no. "It's fine...I'm fine...honest, I don't need to take off my shirt."

"Harry, why don't you want to take off your shirt?" Bruce asked, suspicious of the boy's odd behavior.

"Please, please don't make me take off my shirt. Can't you just cut the sleeve off or something?"

Bruce sighed, he really didn't want to upset the boy farther and ruin what little trust he had built with him. Harry was close to a full blown panic attack and that was the last thing he wanted. "Alright, we will do it your way. I will cut off the sleeve at the shoulder and then go from there."

Harry visibly relaxed, not realizing that he had been breathing hard. If they saw the belt marks and the bites on his back, it wouldn't take much for them to figure out that he had been raped. "Thank you." he said softly.

"Damn," Bruce cursed when he saw the boy's arm. Without doing an X-ray he could tell that it was broken in two different spots. There was also a huge purple bruise around the upper arm from where his uncle had been gripping it in the lobby.

"Am I the only one who finds it odd that the bruise on your arm matches the one around your neck?" Clint asked, staring hard at the boy. He didn't see the incident in the lobby, but Bruce had told him all about it.

Harry lowered his head not answering the question.

"Alright Clint, I need you to get behind Harry and help brace him. I'm going to pop this shoulder back in, but it's going to hurt." Bruce lifted the boy's chin so he was looking him in eye for the first time. Harry had the greenest eyes that he had even seen, they almost glowed. "On the count of three, ok?"

Harry shook his head no. "No, just do it and get it over with." Harry took a deep breath and closed his eyes.

Bruce looked at Clint and nodded his head. Without a warning, he popped the shoulder back in place and helped catch the boy when his legs gave out on him. He knew that Harry had to be in a considerable amount of pain, and yet he didn't make a sound.

"You're one tough kid," Clint said voice laced with admiration. "Last time my shoulder was popped back in place, I screamed like a little girl."

Harry lifted his head off of Bruce's shoulder and stepped away from from Clint. He could feel a couple of his lashes bleeding from where Clint had rubbed against them reopening the wounds.

"Let's X-ray that arm and then get it set. The results will be ready soon and we don't want to keep your family waiting." Bruce said.

***HP

Pepper led the group back to Bruce's lab, fists clenched in anger. She had never met anyone as greedy as Vernon Dursley, and in her line of business, that was saying something. A half a million dollars... A half a million dollars is what he wanted in compensation for caring for the boy the last thirteen years. It was obvious by the way he talked that he despised the boy and was doing nothing more than selling the kid to Tony. If the results were positive, which she had no doubt that they would be, then she would hand over the money after he signed the custody papers and then happily show them the door. She wasn't worried about the money, Stark Industries would make that back in a day, she just didn't like the slime getting away with that kind of money since there was no way that he spent even a quarter of that on Harry. The only thing that made her feel better, was knowing that Tony would go after them, especially after he saw the condition that his son was in.

Pepper walked into the lab and smiled softly to herself. Harry was sound asleep in Bruce's plush leather work chair, right arm in a green cast from fingers to shoulder. "Green," she said rolling her eyes and looking to Bruce.

Bruce shrugged his shoulders. "Hey, he picked the color, it had nothing to do with the other guy."

Clint smacked Bruce on the back. "Maybe that's because green was the only color you had."

"Surprised the poof didn't pick pink," Dudley muttered.

"What did you call him?" Clint snarled, glaring at the boy.

Dudley quickly scurried behind his mother, trying to hide his morbidly obese body behind her bony one. He knew all about these guys and what they were capable of, he saw them on the news after the alien invasion in New York.

Pepper rubbed her head feeling a migraine coming on. She needed some Advil and soon, preferably before she called Tony and informed him that he had a teenage son. She should just wait and let him be shocked when he returned home.

"The results are ready," Bruce announced standing there with a piece of paper in his hand. He had already decided, and Clint agreed with him, if it turned out Harry wasn't Tony's then they were going to lie and say that he was. Harry needed help and they were prepared to do anything to get him away from his abusive uncle. Looking down at the paper, he grinned. Looked like he wouldn't have to lie after all. "It's 99.9 percent positive that Tony is the father."

"Told you," Vernon exclaimed loudly, startling Harry and making him fall from the chair. Disoriented, Harry scurried backwards until his back hit the wall then brought his arms up to protect his head.

Bruce rushed to Harry talking softly to him. "Harry, everything is alright. The results just came back and their positive. You are Tony Stark's son."

"What... What does that mean?" Harry asked, lowering his arms and blinking away the sleep.

Pepper approached the boy and knelt down in front of him. "Harry, that means that you have a home here, if you want it. The paper work is ready and as soon as they're signed, Tony will have legal custody of you."

"Really, I don't have live with the Dursley's anymore?" It just dawned on Harry, the Dursley's were no longer blood related to him.

"No, Harry, you are Tony's son and you belong here," Pepper said kindly.

"What if he doesn't like me? What if he doesn't want me?" Harry could feel himself starting to panic. What if Tony found out about what he had been allowing his uncle to do since he was a small kid?

"Harry, would you like to stay here or go with your aunt and uncle?" Pepper asked.

"Here," Harry quickly answered. "Please, I promise to be good. Please let me stay here."

Pepper reached out and gently ran her thumb down the boy's bruised cheek. Her heart broke when a few of Harry's tears fell on her hand. "You have a home here with us, Harry, you will never have to go back with them."

Pepper stood up and turned to Bruce. "Can you please take him upstairs and let him watch tv or something? I will be up when I finish here to help get a room set up for him."

"I demand a few minutes with my nephew...alone." Vernon smirked, not missing how his nephew paled or how he started to tremble.

"Like hell," Clint snapped, stepping in front of Harry and blocking his view of his uncle. "The test is positive and you're getting your damn money. I'm not leaving you alone with him, hell, I don't even like you in the same room with him with all of us here."

"He's still my nephew, if I want..."

Pepper thrust the custody papers at Vernon. "As soon as you sign the papers, the money is yours, unless you changed your mind and you prefer to go to court. Tony has enough money to see you in court everyday for the rest of your life, do you?"

"Now see here, little lady." Vernon snarled, face turning a bright red. "I'm sure Mr. Stark doesn't want this mess drug through the media."

"I assure you, Mr. Dursley, Tony doesn't give a shit about the media." Pepper snarled getting right up in Vernon's face. "How about you though? Do you have any skeletons in the closet that you don't want anyone to know about?" Pepper looked at Harry then back to Vernon. "Tony Stark is a genius and there isn't anything he can't find out about somebody. Give him ten minutes and he will know your life story, from your kindergarten class picture to your deepest, darkest secrets. Sign the damn papers or be prepared for your life to be bared for all the world to see."

Vernon looked to Harry, fists clenched in fury. He wanted some time alone with him so he could remind him of his place. He wanted the little freak to know what would happen to him if he told his new daddy what he did to him.

"Vernon, just sign the papers," Petunia pleaded, not wanting to lose all that money.

"Fine," Vernon snarled. Slamming the papers down on the table, he quickly signed them, glaring at Harry the entire time.

"You were right," Clint chuckled. "Pepper can take care of herself."

Bruce helped Harry to his feet and steered him away from his uncle. "She has had years of handling Tony, there isn't anything she can't handle."

***HP

Bruce watched as Pepper escorted the trio out of his office, eyes bleeding green. He didn't know what that man wanted with Harry, but he was positive that it wasn't going to be good. He didn't like the way Vernon looked at the boy, the other guy especially didn't like it.

"Hey kid, are you alright?" Clint asked concerned with how pale and shaky looking Harry was.

Harry collapsed back in Bruce's chair, legs too shaky to keep him on his feet. "I-I can't believe that it's true. I thought unc...Vernon was making it up. I was afraid to get my hopes up. Every year I begged the headmaster at my school to not make me return there, and every year he brushed me off saying that they were my family and that they loved me." Harry snorted. "Love, like that sick bastard would know anything about love."

Bruce grabbed the arms of his chair and knelt in front of Harry. He was growing concerned, it looked like the boy was close to going into shock. "Harry, look at me," he softly demanded.

It took a minute for Harry to focus his eyes, but when he did he was surprised to find Bruce in front of him looking worried. "It's honestly true, you're not playing games are you?" Harry tried to stop the tears, but he he couldn't. For as far back as he could remember he wished that he had a dad that would take him away and protect him from his uncle. Every birthday and every Christmas he wished for a family, someone to love him.

Bruce grabbed Harry's left hand not liking how cold it was. "Clint, in my closet is a blanket, can you please get it for me?" It only took a second for Clint to get the blanket and drape it across the trembling boy's shoulders.

"I know it's a lot to take in, Harry, but it's true. Tony Stark is your father and you never have to see those horrible relatives of yours again." Bruce explained softly, scared that if he talked too loud or moved to fast that he would startle the boy. "Tony has never had to be responsible for anyone so it's going to take the both of you time to get use to each other. Tony has never been a dad and you have never had a dad. I don't doubt for one second though that Tony won't want or love you."

Harry numbly nodded his head. His life had just changed drastically and it made him feel sick to his stomach. Everything now was going to be new and unknown, with the Dursley's he knew what he had to do and what to expect. He was thrilled to have to never return them, but the unknown terrified him.

"Harry, before I take you upstairs to the family floor, I need to know if you're hurt anywhere else." Bruce asked paying close attention to Harry's actions. He knew that Harry wouldn't tell the truth and he didn't want to frighten him by demanding to allow him to do a physical.

Harry shook his head no. "M'fine, was just my arm," he said hating that he was lying. His back may be ripped to shreds, but it wasn't anything that he couldn't handle. His uncle had been belting him since he was four. He was just relieved that it was a belt this time and not one of Vernon's speciality whips.

"And your face and neck, " Clint added frowning at the small boy. "Harry, if you're hurt we need to know. We just want to help you."

Again Harry shook his head no. "Really, I'm fine." Technically he wasn't lying, he was fine, he could handle the pain just fine.

Bruce sighed, he wasn't expecting to get the truth from Harry. He was just going to have to keep a close eye on him. "Alright, Harry, if you follow us we will take you upstairs to where the family floors are."

"Floors?" Harry asked curiously. Unsteadily he got to his feet, grinning when Clint gave him a hand.

Bruce chuckled. "As you can tell, Stark Tower is pretty huge. Tony has set aside a few floors for those that live here and we all share a kitchen, dining and living room."

"How many people live here?" Harry asked trying to hide the fear in his voice. He was always nervous meeting new people, never knowing what they wanted from him.

"Well, there's Tony obviously, Pepper, myself and Clint, Natasha is working in the field for a few days so it will be a while before you meet her, Steve is training some new recruits but he will be here later tonight, and Thor, but he lives pretty far away and only stops in from time to time." Bruce explained.

"Are you all related?"

"No, but we all kinda work together. Tony opened Stark Tower after the invasion to all of us, it's kind of like our headquarters." Clint said.

"Headquarters, for what?" Harry asked. They were once again entering the elevator headed to the main family floor.

Bruce looked at Harry strangely. "You really don't know anything about Tony, do you?" When Harry shook his head no, he asked, "Have you ever heard the the Avengers?"

"No, sorry," Harry answered.

"Damn kid, have you been living in a cave somewhere?" Clint gasped. "What about the alien attack on New York, you had to have heard about that?"

"Sorry, my boarding school really isn't big on technology. We have no tv's or radios, actually we have nothing that uses electricity."

"What the fu..."

Bruce slapped Clint on the back of the head before he could finish his sentence. "Don't tell Tony about that, he would have an aneurism. Technology, engineering, it's his passion...his life." Bruce shook his head, what the hell kind of school would not allow electricity?

"Tell you what kid, after you get settled in I will show you news footage of Tony, the Avengers and the alien invasion, it will be a lot easier then trying to explain it." Clint offered.

Harry wanted to hear more about the aliens, but he didn't know these men well enough to ask questions.

***HP

Harry tried not to stand there gaping like an idiot, but the place was amazing. He was surround by floor to ceiling windows that showed a breathtaking view of the city. He wasn't sure how high up he was, but he felt like he was on top of the world. Spinning around in circles taking in the view he noticed that he was up higher than any other building that he could see.

"Hope you're not afraid of heights, kid," Clint joked.

"This is incredible," Harry said in awe. Finally focusing on the inside instead of the outside he noticed that the room was lavishly furnished. There was numerous couches and chairs all made from fine expensive leather, and an eighty inch tv that took up most of one wall. On the other side of the room was a large fully stocked bar, pool table and the older style video games and pinball machines.

Bruce smiled at the boy, he felt the same way the first time he saw the room. He had spent so much time hiding out in foreign countries living in tents and such that he forgot what it was like to be surrounded by riches. "This is kind of our main hang out room. I think Tony has every movie ever produced here and you can get every tv channel, even those in foreign languages. The remote is a bit complicated to use so we just ask Jarvis to put on whatever we want to watch. Other than cook, there isn't anything that Jarvis can't do."

"That's not true, sir," a voice announced out of nowhere. "While I can't physically cook for you, I can order anything that you may like from take out restaurants. Just ask and I can have it here in thirty minutes."

"That's insane," Harry gasped. "So Jarvis can hear you anywhere at anytime? How is that even possible? He's a machine yet he sounds human."

"Like I said, Tony is a genius." Bruce chuckled. "I take it since your school is electronically challenged that you do share your father's love for engineering?"

It took a second for Harry to process Bruce calling Tony his father. The DNA test may have proved that it was true, but he still had a hard time truly believing it. "Honestly, I don't know the first thing about electronics, I wasn't even allowed to touch the tv at home."

Bruce and Clint exchanged looks over Harry's head. "Harry, we need to talk about your home life." Bruce said carefully reading Harry's actions.

"No we don't," Harry quickly said panic in his voice. He never wanted to think about his life there again. The Dursley's were now gone and he would never have to see them again. Even Dumbledore couldn't send him back there, he was no longer related to Petunia so the bloods wards would no longer work. He chuckled to himself when it dawned him that there was never blood wards and the high and mighty Albus Dumbledore never noticed. Since forcing him to compete in the Tri Wizard Tournament, he had lost his faith and respect for the old man. He had researched after the first task and he had found more than one way that he could have been excused from participating in the tournament. He knew that Dumbledore had to have known about it, and yet he still forced him to compete.

"Harry, we just want to help you," Bruce said calmly. Harry looked like a skittish rabbit that was about to bolt any second.

"Look, they didn't like me and I accepted that when I was little. There isn't much to say about my life there and I just want to move on." Harry winced when pain shot up his arm. Just because it was now set properly didn't mean that it didn't hurt like a bitch.

"Damn, let me get you something for the pain." Bruce took off for Tony's bathroom knowing that he would have some kind of pain killers in his medicine cabinet. He desperately wanted to get the truth from Harry, but not at the cost of losing the boy's trust. He also wanted Harry to feel comfortable in his new home and if he was constantly hounding him then that would never happen.

Clint motioned to the couch in front of the tv. "Why don't you take a seat, you're looking a little pale. Even though it's still early, you have been through a lot and you look like you're close to passing out."

Harry looked nervously at the couch. He had it beat into him that he was not worthy enough to sit on furniture, and the furniture here was much, much nicer than at the Dursley's. Even when visiting the Burrow he preferred to stand or sit on the floor. He didn't know what to do, Bruce and Clint were already suspicious of his home life, and it was true he was close to passing out.

Clint watched as the boy looked at the furniture like it was going to attack him. It was just a leather couch, why was he scared of a simple couch?

"Go ahead and take a seat, I will have Jarvis start up the clips on Tony." Clint tried again.

Harry slowly shuffled toward the couch, but at the last second he slid to the floor instead of the couch. Carefully, he rested his throbbing back against the cool leather praying that he was no longer bleeding. The coolness from the leather felt great on his back, his uncle had whipped him a few different times last night and his back felt like it was fire.

Clint frowned at Harry, confused by his actions. "Kid, you can sit on the couch you know."

"This is more comfortable," Harry said hiding his face behind his long hair. "Really, I like sitting on the floor."

Clint stared at the kid for a few more minutes then sighed. "As long as your comfortable then it's ok I guess. I myself feel more comfortable in high places," he pointed to a small hammock that was strung high up in the corner of the room. "Guess we all have our own weird quirks."

Bruce came walking into the room, but froze in his steps. Raising his eyebrow in Harry's direction, he looked over at Clint silently questioning him. Clint just shrugged his shoulders and shook his head no. Sighing, Bruce walked up to Harry and placed a can of coke and a pill on the coffee table in front of him. "This pill is pretty strong and it will probably knock you on your ass, but it will also kill the pain for a few hours."

Harry smiled gratefully and swallowed the pill without even asking what it was. He was in so much pain that he would probably take a potion from Voldemort himself if the snake face bastard told him it would take away the pain he was suffering.

"Jarvis, run the documentary that was done on Tony please," Clint asked, taking a seat on the same couch that Harry was leaning against. He didn't miss how the boy tensed and subtly scooted away from him.

Bruce also didn't miss how Harry shied away from human contact. The boy tried to hide it, but since he was already suspicious about his abusive past, he didn't miss anything.

Harry tried to stay awake as he learned about his father, but his body was finally giving in. He had just learned that his father was a child prodigy that was the youngest to graduate from MIT, when he finally lost the battle. As he was drifting off to sleep he couldn't help but worry that his father was going to hate him because he was stupid. He wasn't a child genius like Tony and he always had below average grades. When he first started school he loved it and brought home high grades, until his uncle Vernon showed him why it wasn't wise to place above Dudley. Since Dudley was the dumbest in the class, he actually had to work hard at being dumber than him.

Clint clicked off the tv and turned to Bruce. They hadn't even been watching for fifteen minutes when the kid crashed. "What do we do with him?"

"Pepper should be up here any minute to get a room ready for him, but for now I will settle him on the couch. Why was he on the floor anyway?"

"The kid looked like the couch was going to attack him when I told him he could sit on it. I don't know, Bruce, but I think this kid has been badly abused."

Bruce tried to hide the growl in his voice, but he failed. "I agree and he's hiding something. Did you see how he panicked when I asked him to take off his shirt? He's in pain Clint and it's not from his broken arm."

"Never in my life have I ever dealt with such horrible people," Pepper moaned walking into the room. When she saw that Harry was sleeping she lowered her voice. "A half a million dollars and not a penny less is what they demanded for custody of the boy. That man said that if I didn't pay then there was others out there that would gladly buy a pretty young boy."

Clint lunged to his feet and started pacing the room. "You don't think he meant..."

"That's exactly what he meant," Bruce growled between clenched teeth. He wished now that he would have let the other guy teach him a lesson. "You could see how much they hated him, I bet it was killing them knowing that Harry was going to place where he was going to be treated right and get a family. If wasn't for the money, they would have sold him to some pimp and never thought about him again."

Pepper was looking at Harry thoughtfully. "He looks so much like Tony, it's kind of scary. The second I walked into the lab and saw him sitting there I knew immediately that he was Tony's son. How bad do you think the abuse was?"

Bruce closed his eyes and took a few deep breaths. "Harry is very skittish, he doesn't make eye contact, he flinched each time his uncle moved, he's skinnier than an anorexic supermodel, and after hearing that comment about selling him for prostitution...I think we are dealing with a severe case of starvation, physical and verbal abuse and a pray to god not sexual abuse."

Pepper fell into a chair looking pale and sick. "Tony is going to flip when he finds out. He may not have known Harry before this, but he's his son, Tony is going to kill them."

"I'll help him," Clint snapped. "That man was such an arrogant pig, and then to demand alone time with Harry before he left, I'm positive that Harry would have walked away with a few new bruises."

"He is very pretty for a boy," Bruce commented studying the sleeping boy. "With his hair that long, his soft features and small size, he could easily pass as a girl."

"Did you see his eyes?" Pepper asked. "I have never seen eyes that color. If that man would have sold him to a pimp... I just can't think about what would have happened to Harry." Pepper wiped at her eyes, she was never one to show weakness, but the thought of Tony's son being used as a sex toy greatly upset her.

Bruce stood up and quietly approached the sleeping boy. He had a feeling that Harry was a light sleeper, but he was hoping that the pain meds he gave him would keep him out for a few hours. As gently as he could he lifted the boy and settled him on the couch. Taking the blanket, he tucked him in and brushed the loose raven hair from his face. The boy really was extremely pretty.

"Did you call Tony?" Bruce asked turning around and retaking his seat across from Harry. For some reason he felt like he needed to watch over the boy as he slept.

"No," pepper chuckled. "I don't think finding out that you are all of a sudden a father of a teenage boy is news you should get over the phone. I will catch Tony as soon as he gets home and tell him in person."

Bruce nodded his head, Tony didn't need a shock like that while at the conference. "I think we need to have a meeting with everyone to discuss how to handle Harry. Harry is very insecure and scared, we need to do everything we can to make him feel at home. I also suspect that he is hurt and hiding it, so we all need to keep an eye on him."

"That's a good idea, I will send a text to Steve and let him know we have to talk. There isn't much we can do about Natasha and Thor until they show up." Pepper got to her feet. "I will place Harry in the room across from Tony's. Let him sleep here for now and when he wakes we will show him his new room."

"If you don't need me, I'm going up to the training room. I need to do something to keep me from tracking that bastard down and putting an arrow between his eyes," Clint snarled heading for the the elevator.

"Jarvis, lower the lights please," Bruce asked. "I'm going to stay here and keep watch over Harry. He is going to wake scared and disoriented and I don't won't him to be alone."

***HP


	2. Chapter 2

I do not own Harry Potter or Avengers.

OMG, I am totally blown away at the amount of reviews I got on the first chaper. I'm so glad that everyone is interested in this fic and want me to continue. THANK YOU SOOO MUCH.

OK, so I plan to pair Harry up with one of the Avengers later in the fic, but I keep changing my mind on who. Right now I'm leaning towards Bruce because I think he has the compassion to deal with someone as traumatized as Harry. At first I was thinking Loki because of the magic, but I think he is more than what Harry can handle. I was thinking Steve, but there is already a good Harry/Steve fic going on, but he is another that would be able to help Harry. I'm confused, so please review and Let me know who you think I should pair Harry with.

***HP

Steve stood in the room staring between Bruce sitting up asleep in the chair, and an unknown child sleeping on the couch. He didn't hear anything about kids visiting so the situation had him slightly confused. The child looked familiar, but he was certain that he had never met him before. Deciding to get a closer look at the kid, he silently approached the couch.

Sensing someone approaching Harry, Bruce lunged to his feet and got between Harry and the unknown person. He was still mostly asleep so he hadn't had a chance to register who it was.

"Easy Bruce, I mean no harm to the child," Steve reassured, sensing that the other guy was close to the surface. "He looked familiar so I was just getting a closer look."

Bruce blinked the sleep from his eyes feeling slightly disoriented. He wasn't sure how he got from the chair to between Harry and Steve, it was like an alarm triggered and he was consumed with the need to protect the small boy.

"Sorry, Steve, I don't know what came over me," Bruce yawned. Turning his attention to Harry, he critically looked him over. Harry was still sleeping, but by the way his eyes were moving under his eyelids he could tell that he was dreaming.

"Believe it or not, this is Tony Stark's son." Bruce grinned as total shock washed over the Captain's face.

"Since when did Stark get a son?" Steve asked incredulously. Looking at the boy closer, he could see now why he looked so familiar. The boy did look incredibly like Stark, except where Stark had a rugged handsomeness to him, the boy was delicate and feminine looking...pretty even.

"Since his abusive uncle brought him by earlier today and sold him for a half a million dollars." Bruce growled. The more he thought about it, the angrier he got. He didn't mean to fall asleep while watching Harry, but he enjoyed his dreams immensely. He dreamt about torturing the fat bastard until he found out what he did to the boy to cause him to be so skittish and fearful of human touch. After he got the information, he allowed the Hulk to come out and smash the bastard until he was nothing more than a slimy puddle on the floor.

Steve's eyes zeroed in on the cast and the bruise coving most of the boy's face. "Does Tony know he has a son, and do we have bail money for when he kills the man?" If it was his son, he would make the man pay for laying a hand on his child.

"No, and yes," Bruce chuckled. "Pepper didn't want to drop the bomb on him over the phone so she will tell him when he returns. As for bail, I will help Tony hide the body so no bail will be needed."

Steve raised his eyebrows, surprised at the fierceness in Bruce's voice.

"You didn't meet them, Steve, they were truly horrific. That bastard of an uncle even threatened Pepper with selling the boy into child prostitution."

You could see the bulge in Steve's jaws as he clenched his teeth in anger. "How old is the boy?" If he had to guess, which was hard because the boy was so small, he would say he was ten, twelve at the most.

Bruce stuttered for a moment, then turned to look at Harry. "You know, I never asked him his age. I know that he had been living with his aunt and uncle since he was fifteen months old, but I don't know how long ago that was."

"He doesn't look much older than ten," Steve said thoughtfully.

Bruce thought back to how Harry acted earlier. "No, he's older than ten, I'm almost certain."

Bruce and Steve looked to Harry when they heard him start to softly whimper. Every few minutes his body would jerk and a fine sheen of sweat was appearing on his forehead.

"Looks like the boy is having a nightmare," Steve whispered.

"Harry, his name is Harry Potter," Bruce watched as Harry's twitching became stronger and his whimpering louder. He didn't know if he should wake him or wait to see if he came out of the nightmare himself.

"No... uncle...please!"

Bruce slowly approached Harry and knelt down on the floor.

"M'sorry, uncle...please don't make me."

"Should we wake him?" Steve asked, he didn't like seeing the fear and pain on the boy's face.

"Hurts, please stop."

"Harry," Bruce softly whispered not wanting to scare the boy.

"No, please." Harry started to thrash about on the couch crying out as if he was in pain.

"Wake him, Bruce," Steve urged, trying not to panic.

"Harry, Harry wake up," Bruce tried again. When that didn't work, he reached out and gently shook him. Harry's reaction was so sudden that it sent Bruce tumbling backwards and into the coffee table. The second that his hand made contact with Harry's side, the boy let out a blood curdling scream and flew off the couch and ran to the far side of the room and hid in the corner crying.

Steve helped Bruce up then they slowly approached the trembling child. He had never seen anyone go from a dead sleep to up and in flight in less then a second. He could tell by the eyes that Harry wasn't fully awake and aware of his surroundings.

"Please, no more." Harry pleaded as his uncle advanced on him. He was in so much pain and there was no way that he could take another beating from the man.

Bruce grabbed Steve by the arm stopping him. "Don't touch him, he doesn't know where he's at."

Bruce slowly approached Harry. "You're safe, Harry, no one will hurt you here. It's me Bruce, I ran the paternity test that proved that you are Tony Stark's son.

Harry rested his head in the wall now recognizing Bruce. "S-Sorry, I guess I just had a bad nightmare."

"Harry, that wasn't just a bad nightmare." Bruce said softly. "You were begging to your uncle, you said it hurt."

Harry pushed away from the wall and shoved his trembling left hand into his pocket to hide it. "You... You must have misunderstood me." Harry went to walk around Bruce, but froze when he saw that there was another man in the room. Feeling safe with Bruce, he took a step closer to him.

Steve gave the kid a soft smile, noticing how he was looking at him in fear. He had been training new recruits for the past eight hours so his hair was a mess, his clothes were wrinkly and he was sweaty. Combine that with his size, and he was sure he looked intimidating to the small boy.

" Harry," Bruce frowned when the boy jumped. "I would like you to meet Captain Steve Rogers, he's the leader of our band of misfits." Bruce turned to Steve. "Steve, this is Harry Potter, Tony's son."

"Hello, Harry, it's a pleasure to meet you," Steve held out his hand giving Harry a warm smile.

Harry took two steps back looking fearfully at the large hand. Steve was a very big man and his hand matched the size of the rest of him. A blow from that hand would surely knock him out cold for hours. Hagrid by far had the largest hands he had ever seen, and while they frightened him, at school he had a part to play and a mask to wear. He couldn't let the wizarding world see how weak and scared he was, they would eat him alive if he did. He had been wearing his golden boy mask for them since he was 11, and he couldn't continue to wear it any longer. He was tired physically, mentally and magically. He was what his uncle made him, weak, scared and broken.

Steve slowly pulled his hand back looking at the small boy in concern. "Well, I guess you can't really shake my hand with that cast on, can you?

Harry took a shaky breath. "Sorry, guess I'm just not fully awake yet. The last twenty four hours have been a bit crazy."

"That's understandable, Harry, you are in a strange place with strange people, you're bound to feel insecure and scared." Steve could feel for the boy, he himself had woken seventy years in the future, he could easily imagine how the boy was feeling.

"Are you hungry Harry?" Steve asked. "It's my night to make dinner and I plan to whip something up after I get cleaned up."

"Don't answer him, kid," Clint yelled swinging from his perch. He had come in right before Harry had violently came out of his nightmare. He didn't want to frighten the boy so he decided to watch from his perch. "Cap is a horrible cook, and since we are supposed to be super hero's, I thought I should warn you."

"Hey!" Steve yelled to the archer, not missing how Harry jumped. "I'll have you know, my food hasn't killed or made anyone sick."

"Yet," Bruce mumbled.

"What was that?" Steve asked, playfully glaring at Bruce.

Bruce held up his hands. "Nothing, I was just thinking that maybe we could do away with your weekly baked beans and hot dogs tonight. It's Harry's first night in the tower after all and..."

"We don't want him to think that we're trying to poison him," Clint called down laughing.

Steve looked at Harry sheepishly. "They're right, beans and hot dogs is all I know how to cook, and their awful."

Harry gave Steve a small smile. "No, it's alright, I'm not hungry anyway."

"You may not be hungry, Harry, but you need to eat something. I don't need a scale to tell me that you're dangerously underweight, and you can't take anymore pain pills on an empty stomach."

Harry looked at Bruce, confused that he seemed to care. The man had just met him, why did he care if he ate or not. "I don't want to put anyone out, I can fix myself something up." If he was allowed, he thought to himself.

"I'll be the first to admit that our cooking sucks. Pepper is the only decent cook out of all of us and she is in a meeting tonight." Bruce said thoughtfully. "Since it's just the four of us, how about I order us some pizza?"

Breathing started to become hard for Harry, he didn't realize that he was alone with three strange men. Three very large and strong men.

"Movies and pizza sounds like the perfect guys night," Clint said swinging down from his perch. Harry looked like he was going to bolt, he obviously wasn't comfortable around the three of them.

"How about it Harry, pizza and movies sound good to you?" Bruce asked.

The last thing that Harry wanted was pizza and movies, but he didn't want to piss these men off. Bruce may have made him feel safe, but that didn't mean that he wouldn't hurt him if he didn't get what he wanted. He also didn't miss the knife that Clint kept on him or the bulging muscles under Steve's tight shirt. No, he did not want to get on their bad side.

"Yeah, sure." Harry answered, voice barely above a whisper.

Bruce sighed, he knew that Harry was just saying yes because he was scared. "Excellent, what do you like on your pizza?" For now they were just going to have to do their best to prove that they were the good guys and wouldn't harm him.

"I-I don't really know, I-I have never had pizza before?"

"Do you mean to tell me that your family never allowed you to eat the pizza they ordered for your fat ass cousin?" Clint snarled.

Harry shook his head. "No, I-I was just never home when they ordered pizza. They would have given me some," Harry lied. The truth was, the Dursley's ordered pizza at least once a week, but he was never allowed any. He looked forward to and dreaded pizza night all at the same time. He looked forward to it because it meant that he got a break from cooking that night. He dreaded it because the pizza looked and smelled amazing. He was forced to get the pizza then dish it out to his family, but he was never allowed to try any. He would have to watch as his uncle and cousin pigged out as his stomach grumbled loudly and ached painfully. Even if there was pizza left over, which very seldom happened, he was not allowed any.

The three men didn't believe Harry for a second. Steve didn't know all the details, but he could plainly see that the boy had been starved.

"Jarvis, could you order us two large extra cheese pizza's, 3 large meat lovers pizza's, one Hawaiian pizza, three orders of mozzarella sticks and the house salad from Tony's favorite place?" Bruce ordered the salad figuring Harry could use some vegetables. Pizza wasn't all that good for you but right now he just wanted to make Harry comfortable and get some food into him. It was true, they all totally sucked at cooking and Harry didn't look up to going out to a nice restaurant.

"The order has been placed, sir, I will inform you when it arrives," Jarvis announced.

Bruce smiled at Harry. "Why don't I show you to your room why we wait for the pizza?"

"Why you do that, I'm going to get a shower." Steve turned for the elevator.

***HP

Harry stood there in shock. The room that Bruce took him to was bigger then the entire bottom floor of the Dursley's home. One wall was nothing but glass showcasing an amazing view of the city. There was a king sized bed in the middle of the room, small table and chair against one wall, a large flat screen tv, black leather couch, dresser, walk in closet that was bigger than Dudley's room and a private bathroom.

"I c-can't stay here, it's too much." Harry stuttered. He was use to small spaces, and this was so big that it was scary.

Bruce placed Harry's trunk at the foot of his bed. It was sad that everything the boy owned fit into a small school trunk. "Sorry, all the rooms are this big. Tony has a lot of money and he likes to show off. I will leave you so you can get settled. Is there anything you need before I go?" At seeing Harry shake his head, he walked to the door. "This is your room now, Harry, and you can decorate it however you want. If there is anything you need to buy, just let myself or Pepper know and we can take you shopping." Bruce held up his hand before Harry could say anything. "Harry, you're Tony Stark's son, money will never be an issue. If I know Pepper, she already has a credit card with you name on it."

"I don't need a credit card, Tony doesn't have to waste his money on me." Harry could feel himself start to panic again. He had never been given anything for free, there was always a price to pay. He remembered the time when he was eight and his uncle had bought him a nice new outfit and told him he was going to take him out to dinner. He was so excited and he thought for sure that he had finally earned his uncle's love. His uncle had said that it was because he had been good boy and it was his birthday, but the dinner was at his bosses house and it wasn't his birthday they were celebrating. Vernon had found out about his bosses sick fantasy of being with a young boy. The next day his uncle came home bragging because he had gotten the promotion that he had wanted. Harry was positive that it wasn't his uncle's job performance that had gotten him the promotion, but his performance in his bosses bed. That was the first time that his uncle had given him to another man, but it wasn't the last.

"Hey, easy there, Harry," Bruce said, walking back towards the distressed boy. Harry had gone alarmingly pale and his entire body was trembling. He wasn't sure, but it looked like he was having a flashback.

Harry rapidly blinked his eyes and focused back on Bruce. "I-I really don't need anything and I especially don't need a room this big."

Bruce wanted to take the scared boy into his arms and comfort him, but he knew that his touch wouldn't be welcome. "Harry, I know that you have been hurt bad. Please believe me when I say that no one here will ever hurt you or make you do something that you don't want to do. Tony will also never expect for you to pay him back for whatever you buy. You are his son and it's his responsibility to look after you and supply you with the necessities."

"I haven't been hurt," Harry said, voice barely above a whisper.

Bruce sighed. "Harry, I won't force you to spill your secrets, but I'm here if you ever need to talk. Now, this is your room so get use to it," he chuckled. "Oh and if you decide to take a bath or shower, try not to get your cast wet. A bath may be a lot easier with that." Bruce turned and left, closing Harry's bedroom door behind him. They had their work cut out for them, it was going to take a while to earn Harry's trust. As much as he didn't want to think about it, he had a feeling that Harry's abuse went beyond name calling and beatings. For now though he was going to keep his suspicions to himself, unless his opinion was asked on the matter.

Harry walked to his trunk and took a seat on it. Looking around at the large room, he felt so alone. He had always been alone, but being in this large space made it more so. He never liked his small cupboard or bedroom, but he felt more claustrophobic in this large room. Getting up, he dug through his trunk and pulled out a pair of Dudley's oversized sweat pants and a t-shirt that that was so big that it came down to his knees. He was embarrassed to be seen in such rags, but it was all he had.

The bathroom was like the rest of everything he has seen at Stark Tower, expensive and over the top. The jetted bathtub could almost rival the prefects bathroom in size. Next to the bathtub was a shower stall that had multiple shower heads and a built in seat. The mirror took up one entire wall and the sink was so big that he could sit in it. Opening up a closet door, he found a pile of fluffy white towels and washcloths. He was also relieved to find soap, shampoo and conditioner and toothbrush and tooth paste. Grabbing what he needed, he turned to the tub and started filling it with cool water. He would have preferred a hot bath, but he knew that the heat would only irritate his lash marks.

Pulling on the hem of his shirt, he cried out in pain from where the shirt had stuck to the lacerations and pulled off the scarabs. He tried three more times to remove the shirt that was stuck to his back before he finally gave up. He would just have to get in the tub with it on and hope that he could work it off with the help of the soap and water.

It took some work, gently tugging and pulling, but Harry was finally able to remove his shirt. He cringed when he noticed that his bath water had turned pink from the blood. He didn't spend long in the tub, afraid that one of the guys would come looking for him. Getting out, he drained the pink water and wrapped one of the large towels around himself. While in the tub, he had washed his bloody shirt then hung it off the side of the tub. It wasn't easy bathing with one hand, but after all the times his uncle had broken one of his arms, he was use to it.

When Harry removed the towel, he almost died when he saw all the blood standing out brightly on the white Egyptian cotton. He could scrub that towel for hours and there was no way all that blood was going to come out. As quick as he could, he sprinted into his bedroom and shoved the towel into the bottom of his trunk. Why couldn't his towels have been red?

With his back throbbing, Harry made his way back to the bathroom to get dressed. He cringed when he caught a glimpse of his back in the mirror. His welts were flaming red and angry looking, a few even looked like they were getting infected. There wasn't an inch of skin on his back that wasn't welted, torn or red, and under all that damage was years worth of old scars.

"Young sir, DR. Banner asked me to tell you that the pizza is here and they are waiting for you."

Harry jumped, slamming his hand over his pounding heart. He didn't think he would ever get use to a voice coming out of nowhere. He wondered if Jarvis could actually see what he was doing. "Tell him I'm coming, please." Harry looked around the room nervously, looking to see if he could find any hidden cameras or something.

Harry quickly dressed, praying that his back had stopped bleeding. Trying not to fret over his outfit, he left his room and headed for the living room.

***HP

Bruce looked up from where he was setting the food out on the coffee table and froze. The other guy started clawing to get out when he saw the atrocious clothes that Harry was wearing. It was obvious that Harry was wearing his fat cousin's discarded clothes, and he could tell by Harry's posture that he was mortified. Checking his anger, he motioned for the boy to join him.

Harry shyly approached Bruce, eyes lowered to his feet. He knew he looked ridiculous in his cousins clothes, but there was nothing he could do about it. At the Burrow he didn't care about his clothes, all the boys had passed down their clothes to one another so receiving handy downs was never a big deal. At school he had his school uniform and long robes, but here he was surrounded by riches and everything was top of the line.

"Help yourself, Harry." Bruce said handing him a plate. "But I would grab everything you want now," he warned. "We have big appetites around here, especially Cap."

Nodding his head, Harry took the plate and placed a small slice of cheese pizza on it and a little bit of salad. Looking around, he retook his previous seat on the floor.

Bruce frowned at the boy's plate, Harry had hardly taken anything. Grabbing another plate, he added a slice of the meat lovers, a slice of Hawaiian and five mozzarella sticks. Placing the plate in front of Harry, he gave him a look that clearly said...don't argue.

"So, Harry, I never asked how old you were." Bruce took a seat on the floor too, opposite of Harry.

Harry was looking at the piece of cheesy hot gooyness on his plate, not believing that he was actually going to get to eat a slice. "Fourteen, but I have a birthday coming up," he answered, then before Bruce could ask him another question, he bit into his pizza.

Harry couldn't have stopped the moan even if he wanted to...which he didn't. Pizza was everything and more than what he thought it would be. He could see now why his cousin always cried for pizza, it was bloody fantastic.

Despite Bruce chuckling at Harry's antics, on the inside he was seething. Harry was a fourteen year old boy that had never tried pizza before despite his family buying it frequently. If something as simple as pizza had been denied to him, what else had Harry missed out on? He was also having a hard time believing that Harry was fourteen, he was too small for a fourteen year old. Obviously Harry had been denied food and it resulted in his stunted growth. He didn't know how tall Harry's mother was, but Tony was 6'1, at fourteen, Harry should be taller then his current 5'3.

"I see the newest member of our family likes pizza," Steve observed as he entered the room. He was freshly showered and was wearing sleep pants with a comfy t-shirt. He wouldn't have normally walked around in sleep wear, but he was tired and surrounded by people that he considered something like family.

Clint joined their group and between the three adults the pizza's was almost gone in an instant. Harry was thankful that Bruce gave him those extra slices even though he didn't think he would be able to eat them right now. Hopefully he could sneak them in his room without anyone noticing.

"So kid, what would you like to watch?" Clint asked, almost stuffing an entire slice of meat lovers pizza into his mouth.

Harry looked down, picking at the crust of his first slice of pizza. He was almost finished with it, but he was already feeling full. Being starved since he was fifteen months old left him with a small stomach and inability to eat a lot. There were times that he was so hungry that he stuffed himself past the point he should have stopped, but it always ended with him in the bathroom on his knees puking everything back into the toilet. He had spent the first two weeks of his first year at Hogwarts getting sick after every meal because he couldn't stop eating. He had never seen so much food before and he felt like he had to stuff himself before someone told him that everything was a joke and he was getting sent back to the Dursley's. Over the years he learned to eat just a little and stop before he felt full and his stomach bloated.

"It doesn't really matter to me what we watch," Harry answered softly, never looking up from his pizza.

"Well, what was the last movie that you saw?" Clint tried again. He was trying to get Harry to talk more and not just when one of them asked him a question. He didn't have much experience with kids, but he thought teenagers talked a lot and ate their parents out of house. He himself was on his fifth slice of pizza while Harry was still on his first.

Harry just shrugged his shoulders and nibbled on the end of his pizza. The pizza was delicious and he was tempted to keep eating, but his stomach was already getting that bloated feel.

Clint frowned at the small boy. "Harry, have you ever seen a movie?"

Harry had never been allowed to watch tv and the Dursley's either left him locked in his cupboard at home when they went to the movies, or left him out in the car. Uncle Vernon thought it was funny knowing that his freak nephew was trapped in the car for hours in the elements while they were enjoying a movie and snacks.

Not wanting these men to know that he had never watched a movie before, he asked. "Can I please just finish what I was watching earlier?"

"That's a good idea," Bruce said. "Maybe learning more about us will help you feel more comfortable here. Jarvis, please resume the documentary about Tony."

To say that Harry was stunned after watching everything would have been an understatement. He not only watched the documentary about his father, but also one on Captain America then various news clips about the Avengers and the alien invasion.

Bruce chuckled at the shocked look on Harry's face. "Do you have any questions?" he asked. He was concerned that after Harry found out that he could turn into a large green monster that he would run off screaming.

Harry numbly nodded his head. "Only about a million." Harry looked up at Bruce. "Was all that true? Does Tony really have that flying suite, and do you really turn into that green guy?" Before Bruce could answer, Harry said. "That's why your eyes turned green earlier when you were mad at my uncle. It's just like when Remus..." Harry quickly stopped talking, he almost mentioned Remus and werewolf.

Steve noticed how Bruce shifted uncomfortably on the floor. He didn't know why him and Harry were sitting on the floor when there was comfortable chairs to be sitting in, but he wasn't going to question it. "Everything was true, Harry, so now you see, you are safe here with us."

Bruce got up, stretching. "Harry, if you're not comfortable with me living here, I can move out."

Harry looked at Bruce, confused. "Why, I don't understand?"

"Harry, you see what I am, what I turn into when I'm angry."

Bruce tried to hide the pain in his eyes, but Harry didn't miss it. Bruce reminded him of Remus and how he was ashamed of Moony. "I'm not scared of you." Ok, so that wasn't completely true, he was scared of Bruce, but not because he turned into the green monster. He was scared of Bruce because he was a man, and he learned young that men liked to hurt those weaker than them. "You can't help what you are and you shouldn't fight it. The way I see it, the Hulk saved hundreds of people, he didn't go on a mindless killing spree."

"But I can't control..." Bruce started, but Harry interrupted him.

"Maybe if you didn't fight the Hulk all the time, you would have more control when you turn. The way I see it, the Hulk is only trying to protect you.

Bruce couldn't believe what he was hearing, even Fury was scared of the other guy. Fury had even built a containment unit to hold him when he turned. "Harry, you don't understand, I'm a monster."

Harry snorted. "I know monsters, and so far you are nothing like them." Harry gingerly got to his feet, he was stiff from sitting on the floor for so long and his back was aching worse then ever. He was scared that his lashes were getting infected and he didn't know how he was going to get any antibiotic cream to put on them. "If it's all right with you, I would like to go to bed?"

Bruce nodded his head, he was still processing everything that Harry had just said. By the looks on Clint and Steve's face, they were doing the same thing. Digging in his pocket, he pulled out a little packet with a pill in it. "Here, for your pain," he said handing if to Harry.

Harry thanked him and swallowed the pill. He wished that muggle pain pills worked as fast as pain relieving potions, but at least he knew he had some relief coming.

Bruce saw how Harry was looking longingly at his left over pizza. He was upset that Harry only ate one slice of pizza and his salad, but he wasn't going to say anything. "Harry, I will put your pizza in the fridge. If you get hungry tonight, just ask Jarvis and he will direct you to the kitchen. He can also help you with using the appliances if you don't know how."

Harry nodded his head trying not to laugh. He had been cooking for the Dursley's since before he could even properly reach the stove. "Thank you," he said, giving Bruce a small smile.

"We normally eat breakfast around seven, and like dinner, we take turns cooking." Bruce grimaced. "Tomorrow is my morning to cook."

Harry looked around when he heard Steve and Clint groan. Steve actually looked like he was turning a bit green.

"I don't think my stomach could take another batch of your homemade oatmeal," Steve moaned, placing a hand on his stomach and rubbing it.

Bruce nodded his head. "I don't think my stomach could handle it either. I promise that I will make something good tomorrow."

Harry didn't miss how Steve and Clint exchanged fearful looks.

***HP

Harry tossed and turned all night unable to sleep. His back felt like someone was taking a flame to it, and there wasn't a position he could find that was comfortable. He was also scared in such a big room, and there was no way he could sleep in such a massive plush bed. His thoughts also kept wandering back to the third task and the death of Cedric. Him and Cedric had built up a friendship last year and he even started to get a crush on the older Hufflepuff. It terrified him at first, the feelings he felt for Cedric. He had been getting raped by men since he was a small boy, how could he actually have feelings for a guy? A relationship with anyone, especially sex, was the last thing that he ever wanted, but he couldn't deny that he liked being in Cedric's presence.

Finally giving up on his attempts at sleeping, Harry got up from his makeshift bed on the floor and grabbed the clothes that he had worn yesterday. He didn't like wearing the same clothes two days in a row, but it was the only decent outfit that he had.

Walking into the dark living room, Harry stopped and looked around. It was only six in the morning so everyone else must have been still sleeping. Deciding to pay them back for their kindness, he was going to make them a good breakfast...if he could find the kitchen that is. Deep down he was also hoping that if he made himself useful by cooking, that they wouldn't kick him out of the Tower when they found out that he was a freak.

"Uhm, Jarvis, are you there?" Harry called out uncertainly. Did computers sleep, he wondered?

"Yes, young sir, how may I assist you?"

"Uhm, Harry, you can call me Harry, not young sir." Harry said sheepishly, he couldn't believe that he was talking to a computer.

"As you wish, Harry. Did you need something?"

"Yeah, could you please direct me to the kitchen?" Harry couldn't stop the small chuckle from escaping. It was totally weird asking a disembodied voice for help.

Harry followed the AI's instructions and soon found himself in the largest, most extravagant kitchen that he had ever seen. "Should have known," he muttered shaking his head. Looking around he noticed that all the appliances looked extremely complicated, and hardly ever used.

It was bit of a learning experience and he did have to ask a Jarvis for help in using the high tech stove, but he soon had a pile of pancakes set out, along with hash browns, blueberry muffins, fruit, freshly squeezed orange juice and coffee. He wasn't sure what everyone liked, but by the way they packed the food away last night, he didn't think they were too picky.

Steve was the first to walk in the kitchen, nose up and sniffing the air. He hadn't smelled such good food since he had left home. "Harry!" he exclaimed shocked. He knew there was no way that Bruce could cook up something that smelled that good, but he never expected to see the small boy standing at the stove flipping pancakes.

Harry spun around, trying to hide the fact that he had been startled. He had been lost in thought, so he never heard the Captain enter the kitchen. "Sir, please sit. I made breakfast."

Steve almost drooled at the sight before him. The large table was covered in food and everything looked to be cooked to perfection. "Oh my god, everything looks and smells amazing," he commented as he took a seat and started piling his plate full of food?

The first forkful of pancakes had Steve moaning in pure bliss. "Harry, I don't know where you learned to cook like this, but never have I tasted anything as delicious as this." Steve wasn't sure if a kid as young as Harry should using something as dangerous as the stove, but the second forkful had him forgetting everything but the food in front of him.

Harry blushed and allowed a small smile to escape. He had never been complimented on for his cooking, and since he was never allowed to taste it for himself, he didn't know if his food was any good.

By the time that Bruce and Clint had entered the kitchen, Steve had already gone through an impressive stack on pancakes. "If I don't stop eating, I'm not going to be able to move for the rest of the day," Steve moaned, leaning back in his chair and rubbing his overly full stuffed stomach. With a groan, he leaned forward and grabbed to more fresh pancakes from the stack.

Harry couldn't help but giggle at the large soldier. For the past thirty minutes he had been saying that, then he would grab two more pancakes and continue eating. He had to admit, Steve had already eaten more then Vernon and Dudley put together.

"What is that delicious smell, and can I have some it?" Clint moaned, walking towards the table like a zombie.

"No," Steve growled, pulling the stack of pancakes closer to his plate.

Harry giggled some more. He didn't see it, but his giggling caused Steve to grin around the fork that was in his mouth. He loved hearing the small boy's laughter and he hoped that he could get a lot more giggles out of him.

Harry grabbed a plate and placed four, right out of the pan pancakes on it and handed it to Clint. "Don't let Steve scare you off, I have plenty." Harry said shyly. For the first time ever he was enjoying cooking.

Clint brought the plate to his nose and took a big sniff. "Oh, that smells like heaven," he groaned. Without even adding butter or syrup, he took a forkful, closing his eyes and moaning. "Please tell me that we can keep the kid?"

With a shy smile Harry handed Bruce a plate piled high with pancakes. Bruce retuned Harry's smile and took the plate. "Clint, Harry is not a dog, we can't just keep him." Tasting the pancakes himself, he moaned in pleasure like the other two. "I take that back, we are so keeping him."

Harry laughed so hard that he had tears in his eyes. The three men smiled at each other, happy that Harry was getting comfortable around them.

"Ok, I mean it this time," groaned Steve. "If I eat another bite, I'm going to explode." Wiping his hand across his forehead, Steve cried out. "Look, I'm sweating! I have eaten so much that I have worked up a sweat."

"Kid, where on earth did you learn to cook like that?," Clint asked, rubbing his own bloated stomach. He was supposed to report to Fury in an hour, but he didn't think he would be able to waddle out the door.

Harry had started cleaning up his cooking mess. He had a pile of dishes to tackle, but he wasn't sure how he was going to do that with the bulky cast on his arm. Without turning around, he answered in a small voice. "My aunt didn't like cooking."

Bruce swallowed his last bite, it felt like lead going down his throat. Did his family force him to cook for them then not allow him to eat? Looking at Steve and Clint, he could tell they were coming to the same conclusion. After Harry went to bed last night, they stayed up discussing with each other about Harry's abuse and how they could help him. He didn't mention his fears that Harry had been sexually abused. He hadn't been able to get his uncle's comment out of his head. He had a hard time believing that the man was just throwing out a random threat...no, the man had obviously given it some thought.

Bruce stood up and approached Harry from behind. He didn't miss how the boy tensed and looked ready to bolt. "You did the cooking, so it's only right that we do dishes." he said, voice soft and non threatening.

"No, I-I can do it." Harry didn't want them to think that he was lazy. If he didn't pull his weight then they would surely send him back to uncle, or find something else for him to do. These men were huge, there was no way he could work off his room and board that way, they would kill him.

Bruce reached out and placed his hand on Harry's good shoulder, he wasn't surprised when Harry dropped the pan he had been trying wash and bolted away from him. Looking at the trembling teen that was looking back at him with large fearful emerald eyes, he sighed. "Harry, have you eaten this morning?"

Harry shook his head no, ignoring the rumbling in his stomach.

Loading up a plate, he placed it on the table and pulled out a chair. "Sit and eat," he said looking to Harry. "While you eat, we will clean up. Harry, you don't have to do everything, we work as a team here."

Harry looked longingly at the pancakes. He desperately wanted to try one, but he wasn't allowed to sit at the table. He had planned to nick a pancake after everyone left and eat it in his room.

"Harry, I'm not asking you," Bruce said sternly. He didn't want to scare the teen, but he was hoping if he was a bit firmer that Harry would listen to him. "Please sit and eat."

Harry new the dangers of ignoring a direct command so he hurried to the seat that Bruce was indicating.

Bruce scowled at Harry when he just sat there. Grabbing a knife, he buttered up the pancakes and poured a generous amount of syrup over them. "Eat, Harry!"

Harry took the fork from Bruce and tentatively took a bite of his cooking for the very first time. "Oh, this is really good," he moaned. He never imagined that his cooking was that good.

Steve frowned, "Harry, haven't you tasted your cooking before?"

Harry swallowed his food, looking at Steve like a deer caught in the headlights. "Yeah... Yeah of course I have." Harry lowered his eyes and continued eating. All three knew that he was lying. Harry may be an amazing cook, but he sucked at lying.

Pepper managed to get to the kitchen just in time to grab a pancake and a muffin. After scolding Harry for using the stove, she praised him for his excellent cooking and said that since he obviously knew what he was doing, that he was allowed to use the stove whenever he wanted to. She wasn't worried about Harry burning the tower down, no, she was worried about him getting burned.

"Oh, Harry, before I forget," Pepper handed him an envelope. "Don't be shy using it," she said with a wink. "All I ask is that you don't wander off alone. This city can be dangerous if you don't know it, and once people find out that you're Tony's son...well, let's just say that you will get more attention then what you will want." She didn't mention that he could be in danger. If Tony's enemies found out that he had a son, Harry would have a target on his back. If Harry was kidnapped, there would be nothing that Tony wouldn't do to get him back.

Harry reached in the envelope and pulled out a shiny black credit card. "I-I can't take this," he said in a panicked voice.

Pepper shoved the card back at Harry when he tried to hand it to her. "I don't want to hear it, Harry. You are Tony's son and he has more money than what he could spend in twelve lifetimes. There is no limit on that card, so maybe you can talk one of these guys into taking you shopping. I noticed that you're wearing the same outfit as yesterday, so you're obviously in need of clothes."

Harry flushed in embarrassment.

"I mean it, Harry. If you don't go out and spoil yourself, then I will do it for you. I never had to clothes shop for a teenage boy before, and I'm sure you won't like the styles I pick out." Pepper gave Harry a stern look.

"Tell you what, kid, as a thank you for that amazing breakfast, after my meeting I will take you out." Clint offered. "I'm not as young as you, but I think I'm still pretty hip."

"The fact that you just used the word hip, proves that you're not," Pepper chuckled. "It's a shame that Natasha isn't here, she would know what stores to go to."

Bruce had a moment of unexplained panic. The thought of Harry wandering the city without him made his heart rate pick up and his palms sweat. "If you can wait until noon, I will come with you two and we can grab some lunch." Bruce knew that he was being ridiculous, Clint was more then capable protecting Harry, but Harry leaving without him felt wrong.

"Alright," Clint said, giving Bruce a questioning look. Bruce normally didn't wander out too much in public, he was always afraid of losing control of the other guy.

Bruce ignored Clint and headed for the elevator. "Harry, I will be in my lab if you need me or if you just don't want to be alone, you're more than welcome to come visit."

Harry gave Bruce a small smile. He would probably just go back to his room and rest for a bit. He was tired from lack of sleep, and the pain pill that Bruce gave him was hitting him hard.

Pepper turned before leaving. "Harry, are you sure you will be alright alone?" She hated leaving the teen alone in a strange place." When Harry nodded, she added. "If you need anything, just ask Jarvis. He can also get in contact with any of us if there is a problem."

Harry watched as everyone left already feeling lonely. He had fun cooking for everyone this morning and watching their reactions to his food. Steve was particularly funny and the man must have eaten three dozen pancakes. He didn't understand how the man stayed so incredibly fit if he always ate so much.

***HP

Tony grinned as he saw Stark Tower come into view. If he was lucky, Pepper would already be at the office and the rest of the group would be off doing whatever it is that they do. He figured he had at least eight hours before Pepper found out that he ditched the conference and decided to fly home in his suite instead of his jet. If he would have used the jet, then Pepper would have been alerted immediately and she would have called screaming at him and he wouldn't have been able to escape the mind numbing conference. He just wanted to get home, order a pizza, pop in a movie and not move until Pepper came hunting him down. Maybe he should play it safe and keep his Iron Man suite on, Pepper could pack one hell of a punch when she was mad.

"Welcome home, sir," Jarvis said the moment that Tony landed on the roof. "I hope you had a good flight."

"Good morning, Jarvis, and yes I had a pleasant flight." As Tony walked across the roof, his Iron Man suite came off in pieces.

"Sir, Mrs. Potts asked me to inform her the second you returned home, of course she wasn't expecting you until next week."

Tony froze mid step, looking around like was expecting Pepper to jump out and attack him. "Please, Jarvis, don't tell Pepper that I have returned."

"Sir, she said it was important that I notify her immediately."

Tony cursed, "Please, Jarvis, as your maker I'm begging you to not tell Pepper. Please, just give me until five and then you can be a good little AI and inform her that I am home."

"Very well, sir," Jarvis answered.

Softly whistling, Tony entered his tower and made his way to the kitchen. For once he didn't feel like alcohol, he was going to grab a coke then order himself some pizza. He was looking forward to having some quiet alone time in his tower. Don't get him wrong, he loved having his fellow Avengers here, but it was still nice to get a break from everybody.

Walking into the kitchen, Tony froze when he was assaulted with the most intoxicating scent. Deeply inhaling, he followed his nose until it led him to a plate of blueberry muffins. "Oh hello beautiful," he purred. Scooping up the plate, he placed them at the table and took a seat. "Where did you lovelies come from?" he asked huskily. Gingerly he picked up a muffin and brought it to his nose. "Oh beautiful, do you have any idea what your scent does to me?"

Taking a bite, his eyes rolled to the back of his head. "Oh shit, I think I just had an orgasm."

***HP

Harry splashed some cold water on his face. He managed to get two hours of sleep before his nightmares woke him. He also wasn't feeling too well, he felt hot and shaky and the pain in his back had bypassed bearable. Moving now was getting impossible, he didn't know how he was going to go clothes shopping with Bruce and Clint. He figured that his sick feeling was coming from the lashes that last night looked like they were getting infected. He was tempted to lift his shirt to see, but there was nothing he could do for them anyway.

Slowly Harry made his way to the kitchen to get a drink, and maybe if he was lucky he could find something for his back and fever. Walking into the kitchen, he almost passed out when he saw who was sitting there.

Tony was happily working his way through his fifth muffin when the kitchen door opened up. Mouth wide open and muffin halfway in, he froze. "Did my future self discover the fountain of youth, invent a time machine and travel back to bring me these delicious blueberry muffins?" he asked, never lowering the muffin.

Harry was too shocked to talk so he just stupidly shook his head no.

Tony brought the muffin to his eyes and started inspecting it. "Did someone slip some LSD into these muffins causing me to hallucinate?"

Again, Harry just shook his head no.

"Oh thank god," Tony moaned. "These are the best blueberry muffins in the world, and I should know, I'm an expert on blueberry muffins. See, blueberries are my favorite and I have tried blueberry muffins in every state in the USA and in every country in the world, and these are by far the the best I have ever eaten."

Harry gave a shy smile. Not only was he happy that his father loved his muffins, but blueberries was also his favorite fruit. It was cool finding out that he shared something in common with the father he had never met.

Tony reluctantly put the muffin back on the plate, never taking his eyes off the boy. He didn't have to be the genius that he was to know what was going on. Under the ugly bruise on the boy's face was almost an identical replica of himself at that age. Granted he had never been that skinny or scared looking, but the resemblance was too great to ignore.

"Right then, uhm..." For the first time he could remember, Tony was at a loss for words. "Jarvis, I think now might be a good time to tell Pepper that I'm home," he called out.

"Mrs. Potts is on her way home, sir," Jarvis announced.

"Thanks, Jarvis" Tony said absently, still staring at his little clone. "I would offer you a blueberry muffin, but their too damn good to share."

"That's alright," Harry said, shrugging his shoulders. "I'm not very hungry anyway. Besides, I can always make some more when they run out."

"Are you telling me that you're the creator...the master mind behind these beauties?" Tony asked, picking up another muffin and taking a bite. "Oh god, do you think it's against the law to marry food?"

"I think it may be frowned upon," Harry giggled. "And yes, I'm the one who made the muffins."

Tony nodded his head, still stuffing his face. "Well, you're a genius. Not only are you good looking, but you're talented as well, must be in your blood."

Harry didn't know how to answer that so he just remained silently standing.

Tony kicked out the chair across from him. "Why don't you take a seat, you look close to passing out?" Someone had really done a number on the boy, and by the size of the hand mark around his neck, it wasn't another kid responsible.

Harry carefully sat down, mindful of his back. The pain was so bad that he was on the verge of tears.

Tony didn't miss how stiff the boy was, he was obviously in a great deal of pain. "Well, I know who I am, but I don't know who you are." he said, grabbing yet another muffin and taking a bite.

"Harry, sir, Harry Potter."

"Did you just call me, sir?" Tony gasped. "Oh shit, you did, didn't you?"

Harry looked at Tony fearfully. He had just met the man and he had already done something wrong.

Tony bent his head down frantically running his fingers through his hair. "Do you see any, please tell me that you don't see any?"

"I'm sorry, I didn't mean to upset you." Harry whispered, shaking and eyes filling up with tear. "What is it that I'm looking for?" he asked confused.

"The dreaded grey hairs." Tony said ominously. "You see, it starts off with everyone calling you sir, then you start to get grey hairs, and then before you know it, your walking around with your nose stuck up in the air, and a stick shoved up your ass. All of a sudden people expect you to act all grown up and be all bossy like. I just narrowly escaped the conference with my beautiful hair still black and greyless. I'm telling you kid, it's a plague and I'm begging you to never call me that cursed word again."

Just then the kitchen door banged open and a pissed of Pepper Potts came stalking in. "Anthony Stark, you better have a damn good reason for leaving the conference on only it's second day."

Tony slowly got to his feet and held his hand out to Harry. "Harry, very slowly get up and walk towards me. Pepper may seem alright, but she's one of them. Just look at her, Harry, she's all uptight and bossy, and I bet if her hair wasn't in a bun, we would find some grey hairs."

Harry couldn't stop giggling at his father's antics. For a second there, he thought that he was really in trouble.

Pepper's face softened at hearing Harry's laughter. She was pissed that Tony bailed on the conference, but he might have been exactly what Harry needed. For the first time since meeting him, Harry had a spark of life in his beautiful emerald eyes.


	3. Chapter 3

I do not own Harry Potter or The Avengers.

I am shocked at how many people are enjoying this fic. I thought about this plot for months, but I was scared to post since I didn't know much about the Avengers.

I am still on the fence of who to pair Harry with when he gets a bit older. There was a lot of people wanting Spider Man, but I'm really not a fan of his. Maybe I need to watch the newer movies, I just hated the kid that played him in the older movies... Toby Maguire. Really, he just ruined Spider Man food me :(

Please review and let me know how I'm doing.

***HP

Pepper shook her head at Tony. "Tony, this is Harry, he's... "

Tony picked up another blueberry muffin. "The evil genius behind these muffins." Tony winked at Harry. "I'm going to have to get busy upgrading the Ironman suite because if I keep eating these, I'm going to need a bigger one."

"Tony," Pepper sighed.

"Honestly, Pepper, have you tried these muffins?" Tony asked, taking a big bite of the muffin.

"Yes, Tony, and while they were delicious, his pancakes were out of this world."

Tony placed the plate back on the table and collapsed in the chair. "Wait a minute, are you telling me that there was homemade pancakes made in here...in my kitchen?"

Pepper rolled her eyes. "Yes, Tony, Harry made everyone pancakes this morning. You should have seen Steve, Bruce had to physically help him up and out of the kitchen."

Harry giggled. "I didn't know a person could eat that much without getting sick."

"Pancakes, in my kitchen," Tony gasped. "Complete with butter and maple syrup?"

Harry nodded his head.

"I like pancakes," Tony said pouting. "The only thing better than blueberries and pancakes, is blueberries in pancakes."

"I-I can make you blueberry pancakes now," Harry said getting to his feet. Pain exploded from his back, forcing him to grip the table hard while biting his tongue to keep from crying out.

"Whoa, kid, are you alright? " Tony asked. Quickly he jumped up and went around the table, reaching out to help.

Harry flinched when he saw the hand reach out for him. Allowing his instincts to take over, he ducked and scurried around the table and to the other side of the kitchen. Not watching where he was going because he was keeping an eye on Tony, he painfully slammed his back against the counter. He had just managed to stop himself from falling to his knees, but he didn't succeed in holding his tears back. The pain was a hundred times worse than the original whipping, hell, it was worse than the Cruciatus Curse.

Tony didn't know what to do, he had never seen such fear and pain on a child's face. "Harry, are you hurt?" he asked softly, trying not to frighten the boy more.

Wiping at his eyes, Harry shook his head no. "Sorry, you just startled me and then I hit my back, but I'll be fine." Harry closed his eyes, trying to get a handle on the pain.

Tony looked to Pepper for advice, but was floored when he saw her looking a little green with tears in her eyes. He may be a genius, but he was missing a big piece of the puzzle. It wasn't hard to tell that this boy...his boy, had been hurt bad.

"Harry, please take a seat." Tony offered. "You're not looking so hot."

Harry shook his head no. "I'm fine, honestly." Turning around, he started pulling out ingredients to make blueberry pancakes.

Pepper slapped her hand over her mouth trying not to cry out. Looking to Tony, she saw how his eyes were glued to his son's back...he very much bloody back.

"Jarvis, tell Bruce that he is needed up here immediately." Tony ordered breathlessly.

Harry was leaning against the counter, head spinning madly. He wanted to turn and run, but he knew if he tried he would fall flat on his face. He could feel darkness creeping over him and he fought it with everything he had. He couldn't pass out in front of Tony and Pepper...they couldn't see his shame.

"Harry. "

Harry jumped when he heard his name. It didn't sound close, it sounded like it was coming from the end of a very long tunnel.

"Harry," Tony called, slowly advancing on the small trembling boy. He could tell by the way he was swaying that he was close to passing out. He was kind of hoping that he would pass out, it would be much easier seeing to his back if he wasn't awake to fight.

"M'okay," Harry mumbled, shaking his head. "Gonna make p-p-pancakes."

Tony turned towards the door when he heard it open. Motioning for Bruce to stop, he held his finger to his lips signaling for him to be quiet.

Bruce froze at what he saw. When Jarvis ordered him to the kitchen, he wasn't expecting to find Harry's back a bloody mess and him close to passing out.

"Harry, can I help you make the pancakes?" Tony asked, steadily creeping closer to Harry.

Harry shook his head, stumbling some as he did. Cursing softly, he gripped the counter tighter and righted himself. "S'ok, I can get it." Harry tried to reach up for a bowel, but the pain in his back prevented him from lifting his arm up. Whimpering, he turned towards Tony, tears streaming down his face.

Tony's heart clenched at the look of total defeat on the boy's face. "Harry, please let us help you."

Harry shook his head. "No, m'fine," he slurred.

Despite Harry being pale, Bruce could tell by the flushed cheeks that he was running a fever and a very high one at that. He knew that there was something more than the bruises, broken arm and dislocated shoulder with Harry.

Tony took another step closer to his son, but froze when Harry cried out. "Please, m'sorry. Don't hurt me."

"Never! I will never hurt you Harry, and may god help those that do. I may have just met you, but you are my son and I will protect you until my last breath." Tony said seriously.

Harry blinked at Tony, trying to focus his vision. Everything was spinning and blurry, he could just make out the feint outline of three people. "You... You know that I'm your...?"

"Son?" Tony finished, chuckling softly. "Harry, you look just like me. How could you not be my son?"

"I- I don't think that I will make a very good s-son." Harry cried softly, tears steadily falling now.

Tony snorted. "And I'm sure I'm going to fuck up plenty of times at being a father, but we won't know until we try, right?"

Harry nodded his head, reaching out for the counter when his knees started to give out.

Tony stepped closer, he was now only inches from Harry. "Let me help you," he said softly, holding his hand out to his son.

Harry stared longingly at the hand. He desperately wanted to reach out and take the offered hand and accept help, but no one had ever wanted to help him before. The few times he asked for help in the past it blew up in his face and he ended up being beat to within an inch of his life.

"Trust me, Harry," Tony whispered. "I only want to help you...my son."

Harry's body shook with silent sobs. He always wanted someone to call him son like Mr. Weasley called his boys. Looking Tony in the eye for the first time, he saw only honesty and concern shining out of them. Very slowly he raised his trembling hand and reached out to Tony. Right before their hands touched, Harry collapsed, body finally giving in to the blackness.

Tony caught his son before he could hit the ground. Lifting him up, he cursed when he felt how light he was. He had boots that weighed more than Harry. "My room," he barked, rushing past Bruce and Pepper.

"Lay him on his belly and get me a pair of scissors," Bruce ordered.

Pepper started rooting around Tony's desk drawers looking for a pair of scissors.

"Bottom left," Tony said as he carefully laid Harry onto his bed. "Jarvis, can you get a read on his fever?" The small boy was burning in his arms.

"Sir, his temperature is hundred and four and climbing." Jarvis informed them.

"Tony, we need to get him to a hospital," Bruce said, taking the scissors from Pepper.

"No," Tony snapped. "I may have just met him, but I can tell that he will be very unhappy waking up in a hospital."

"Son of a bitch," Bruce gasped when he saw the damage to Harry's back.

"I'm going to be sick," Pepper choked rushing to the bathroom.

Tony stared horrified at the body on his bed. "He's been flogged." he gasped. His son's back was a shredded mess. Large sections of skin was missing and blood and puss was oozing from the lacerations.

Bruce lightly traced a nasty bite mark on Harry's back right above his pants. Looking to Tony, his eyes started to bleed green. "He's needs a doctor," he growled. "These whip marks are severely infected."

Tony shook his head. "You can treat him. He won't..."

"Dammit, Tony," Bruce snarled. "It's not just his back. I think Harry's been raped."

Tony paled even farther, bile working it's way up his throat. "Jarvis, get a hold of my personal physician and tell him to get his ass here...NOW!"

"Sir, he is currently out of town. Is there someone else you would like me to call?"

"Shit," Tony cursed. He remembered now that he paid for the man to take his wife to Hawaii for their twentieth anniversary.

"Jarvis, call for an ambulance," Peppered ordered, unable to look at the boy on the bed.

"No," Tony snarled. "Jarvis cancel that order."

"Tony, I don't have the antibiotics he needs to treat the infection. I am not a medical doctor." Bruce snapped.

Tony pinched the bridge of his nose. "Pepper, call Agent and tell him we need a doctor, but don't tell him why."

"You want me to call Agent Coulson and involve S.H.I.E.L.D?" Pepper asked, shocked that Tony was even suggesting it. Tony didn't like S.H.I.E.L.D knowing his business and he did his best to drive Fury crazy.

"No, I don't want to involve S.H.I.E.L.D, but I don't have a choice. Harry won't want to be at a hospital, and just think what will happen when the media gets wind that Tony Stark's mysterious son has been admitted to the hospital because he was beat half to death and raped." Tony snapped. "Harry is in no condition to deal with the attention he will get from being my son."

"He's right," Bruce agreed. "Harry is scared of his own shadow, the media will eat him alive."

Nodding her head, Pepper pulled out her phone and dialed Coulson.

Tony knelt beside the bed and brushed the hair from Harry's flushed cheek. "He's burning up."

Bruce stood up headed for the door. "I'm going to get the IV started and bring up some supplies that the doctor will need." Tony had an almost fully stocked medical ward because he himself hated going to public hospitals."

"Pepper, I want details." Tony said as he worked on cutting the rest of the shirt from his son's body. The boy was skinny, almost emaciated. He could clearly see every rib, hell, he could damn near see every bone in his body.

"Harry has been living with his aunt and uncle since his parents death when he was fifteen months old. Tony, they were vilest people that I have ever dealt with. It was plain to see that they despised Harry, and Harry was terrified of them. Despite knowing that Harry had a badly broken arm, his uncle grabbed him by it in the lobby, dislocating his shoulder."

"Jarvis, bring up all security camera footage dealing with Harry's relatives." Tony ordered briskly.

As Tony watched the footage, Bruce returned and started Harry's IV, sedating him so he could start cleaning the wounds. Harry may be passed out, but the second they started cleaning that mess, the boy was sure to wake. He would have preferred to put Harry completely under, but they would need to be in a hospital for that.

"I can't believe that he had been walking around the past twenty four hours with his back like that." Bruce muttered. "He must have been in excruciating pain, yet it never showed."

"He was use to it." Clint added, standing in the doorway. He had been getting ready to leave S.H.I.E.L.D headquarters when his handler got a call requesting a doctor to be immediately sent over to Stark Tower. He rushed over already suspecting that it had something to do with Harry. He may have only met the kid, but he already felt overly protective of him.

"What do you mean, Clint?" Pepper asked.

Clint sighed, walking into the room. "This isn't the first time Harry has been whipped, look at the old scars under the infected ones. No, this has been going on for years, and I guarandamntee you that Harry wasn't allowed to heal before he was forced to do something for those pigs. He already admitted this morning that he did the cooking, I bet that horse faced bitch of an aunt of his didn't lift a damn finger in the house. Harry is use to having to work while in pain, it's what he has always known."

"Jarvis, bring up all information you can find on Harry James Potter," Tony asked when he was done viewing all the security footage. Thugs his ass, there was no way that thugs were responsible for his son's condition. He had no doubts that Harry's uncle had been abusing him, probably since the first day he was left with them. If he found proof, there would be no stopping him.

"Sir, there isn't much in the system about Harry James Potter." Jarvis said.

Tony scrolled through the information. "How can that be?"

"What did you find?" Bruce asked from where he was carefully cleaning Harry's wounds. Where the hell was that S.H.I.E.L.D doctor?

"All I can find is a birth certificate and some early school records, and even those stop at ten."

"What about medical records?" Bruce asked. Even if Harry had never been sick or hurt, he would still have had records for his inoculations.

"No medical history at all, not even for his childhood shots. There isn't even school pictures with him in them. It says here that three months into his first grade the teacher recommended that he be moved up a few grades. His grades were the highest in the class and the work was too easy for him. Then not two month later, Harry had the lowest grades in the class and refused to do the work most days. From then until his school records end at ten years of age, Harry always had the lowest grades and only just passed each year."

"How does he go from being the smartest to the dumbest kid in just a few weeks?" Pepper asked.

"Look up his cousin, that boy was was as dumb as he was fat." Bruce muttered.

"Jarvis, get me everything on Dudley Dursley." Tony ordered. His mind was frantically trying to make sense of everything he had read...well, actually not read. Why was there nothing in the system about Harry? Why did his school records end at ten?

Tony whistled when Dudley's records popped up on the screen. "This kid is on the right path to spending his life in prison. He has multi juvenile arrests for bullying, stealing, sexual assault, attacking teachers...the list just goes on. Dudley had the second lowest grades in the class, scoring just above Harry in all subjects."

Clint snorted. "Well, that answers your question Pepper. Harry wasn't allowed to do better than their precious son. You saw how they catered and babied that pig yesterday. No, there was no that they would allow the nephew they despised to do better in school than their own son."

"Sir, I went ahead and copied everything I could find on Vernon and Petunia Dursley. There are a few photos of them, and after running a facial analysis, they came up as a ninety percent match for young Harry."

"You're amazing, Jarvis." Tony said to his AI. "What would I do without you? Bring up the pictures, please."

Everyone but Bruce looked up at the large screen. He was still carefully cleaning Harry's back, wincing each time the small boy would whimper. The sedation was keeping Harry out of it, but it wasn't stopping him from feeling some pain.

"Best garden for four years in a row, Petunia Dursley of Number 4 Privet Drive, Little Whinging, Surrey." Tony read. The picture showed a blond woman with an extremely long neck and large front teeth proudly holding up a trophy and a long blue ribbon. In the background you could see a beautifully kept yard with lots of flowers and a small pond. Tony ignored all that though, what got his attention was the small boy leaning against the shed holding a small shovel and wearing muddy gloves. The messy haired boy was wearing a large dingy shirt that fell off one bony shoulder exposing a large bruise on his collar bone. The child looked tired and sad, yet there was a hint of pride in his eyes.

"I bet a months worth of cooking duties that Harry was responsible for maintaining that award winning lawn." Tony grumbled.

"He was only six," Pepper gasped after reading the date.

"He may have been six, but he looks no older than four," Bruce commented, looking over his shoulder at the screen. The other guy was roaring in fury at the picture of the beat down little boy. How did everyone ignore a child that was obviously in need of help?

Tony scrolled to the next picture. "Vernon Dursley promoted to director of Grunnings Drills," he read. The picture was from the company's monthly publication and it showed Vernon with his chest puffed out, smirking at the camera wearing a brand new, very expensive suite. Next to him was an older man with a handlebar mustache, dressed just a smartly as Vernon with his hand resting on a small boy's shoulder, fingers wrapped possessively around his skinny neck. Despite the boy's head being down and the new form fitting clothes he was wearing, Tony could tell by the hair and posture that it was his son. The boy had his arms wrapped around his stomach and his clothes were all wrinkled and askew. Looking closer at the picture, Tony could tell that it was taken in a home, not at the company. He could just make out from the reflection in a mirror the corner of a rumpled bed.

A loud growling had all heads whipping in Bruce's direction. "Shit," Tony yelled. Bruce's skin was turning green and his muscles were rippling and enlarging. He was staring at the screen, eyes green and full of fury. "We need to get him to the containment room before he destroys everything," he yelled.

Bruce was fighting hard to hold the Hulk back, but that picture had him enraged. He didn't like how that man was touching Harry. The way his fingers curled around his neck and the cocky look on his face. There was something deeply wrong and disgusting with that picture.

"Easy there, big guy." Clint said softly as he approached the Hulking out Bruce. "Think of Harry, he needs you to help him. The S.H.I.E.L.D doctor isn't here yet, he needs you, Bruce."

Panting and shaking, Bruce fought Hulk for control. He couldn't do this now, not while Harry needed him. There would be time later to let the Hulk out and destroy the containment room that Tony had built for him.

Tony let out a sigh of relief when Bruce's eyes returned to normal. "Shew, that was a close one." He didn't ask what set the Hulk off, he knew exactly what happened. Bruce was thinking the same thing he was about the picture.

"You good, Banner?"

Everyone was so focused on Bruce that they didn't see when Agent Coulson and the doctor arrived.

Tony groaned. "I asked for a doctor, not a doctor and a nosy agent."

Coulson smirked. "It's a pleasure to see you too, Stark. Now, what's this all about? First we get a call requesting a doctor to Stark Tower, then the Hulk is almost let loose. Care to explain?"

"Not really," Tony answered shrugging his shoulders nonchalantly.

Immediately the doctor was at the boy's side assessing his injuries. "Jesus Christ, who the hell is responsible for this boy? He needs to be in a hospital where these wounds can be properly treated. The boy has blood poisoning, and if he doesn't get started on a treatment immediately, then he is going to die."

"Then shut the hell up and treat him," Tony growled. "I have an entire wing full of medical supplies, tell Bruce what you need and he will get it."

"What he needs is to be in the Intensive care unit," the doctor said, standing up and confronting Tony.

"Well, this is what you got, so get saving." Tony snarled, not backing down from the doctor.

The doctor looked like he wanted to say more, but after receiving a nod from Agent Coulson, he started barking out orders to Bruce and Clint.

"Stark, it's time you explain everything," Coulson said seriously.

***HP

Agent Coulson stared down at the small boy on the bed...the boy that happened to be none other than Tony Stark's son. It took a while to get the boy cleaned up and stable, but now he was resting peacefully hooked up to oxygen, IV fluids and antibiotics. At first he didn't believe Tony's claim of Harry being his son, but after seeing the child's face, there was no doubt in his mind that Tony fathered him. He could understand now why Tony was so adamant about Harry not going to the hospital, if the media and Tony's enemies found out about him, Harry could be in serious danger.

Tony was sitting in a chair next to Harry's bed, head resting in his hands. Not only had his son been beaten and raped, according to the doctor, it had been going on for years. The back wasn't the only place where Harry was scarred, the doctor found layers of scars in Harry's anal canal. The doctor figured that Harry had been getting raped since he was a small boy. The picture of his son being touched by his uncle's boss with the rumpled bed in the background kept playing through his head.

"Stark...Tony, are you alright?" Coulson asked, this was a side of Tony that he had never seen before.

Tony snorted, not lifting his head. "It's Clint you should be worried about, he's the one that had to wrestle the Hulk to the containment room." Bruce had totally lost it when his suspicions of Harry being raped were confirmed, but when he found out that it started when he was small, Hulk had completely taken over.

"Tony, it's your son that is laying there critically ill," Coulson pointed out.

Tony lifted his head, looking sadly over at Harry. "A son up until a few hours ago I didn't even know existed."

"Does that matter? Does the fact that you just met your son change how you feel about everything?"

Tony shook his head no. "No, but if I had known about him earlier on, I could have saved him. I don't even remember a Lily Potter or Evans; hell, I don't even recognize her from the picture that Jarvis found."

Coulson looked sharply at Tony. "Did you say Potter, Lily Potter?"

Tony grunted. "I know that I have been with a lot of woman, but I would have remembered a red head like her. The strange thing is, I do remember her husband James." Tony blushed and turned away from Coulson's gaze.

Coulson's eyes grew big, his eyebrows disappearing in his hairline. "Are you saying that you slept with her husband? I didn't know that you batted for the other team."

Tony blushed even redder. "I was young and curious and James was hot. Keep in mind I only batted, I didn't catch. He was my first time with another male that's why I remember the night so vividly. I may have been a bit drunk, but I remember that there was just the two of us, no hot redhead making a threesome."

Coulson stared down at the boy, eyes automatically going to his forehead. "That's a unique scar he has on his forehead."

Tony reached over and brushed the hair from his son's lightning bolt scar. "His aunt," he spat out. "said he got it from the car accident that killed his parents."

Coulson continued to stare at the scar. "Right, well I must be getting back to headquarters. Tony, please don't hunt these people down now. Right now Harry needs you, you can deal with them later.

Tony glared at Coulson. "I'm going to kill them, and I'm going to make sure it hurts. They aren't going to get away with what they did to my son."

"I understand and I don't blame you. All I ask is that you wait until Harry is out of the woods, right now he needs you more than you need revenge."

Tony smirked. "Don't worry your pretty little agent head over me, I'm not leaving my son right now, but you better damn well believe that I'm not going to sit on my ass and do nothing."

Coulson groaned, he knew that there was going to be no talking Tony out of going after them."Just keep it legal Tony, ok?"

Tony didn't say anything, just glared at Coulson.

***HP

"So what was Stark's big emergency?" Nick Fury asked never lifting his eye up from the paperwork he was doing.

Coulson remained standing, arms clasped behind his back. "It seems Tony has a kid. His relatives dropped him off yesterday and sold him for a measly half a million dollars."

Fury's heard snapped up, that got his attention. "Are you saying that Stark has a baby?"

"Baby, no," Coulson chuckled. "Tony has a fourteen year old son. It seems his relatives physically and sexually abused him. The kid was in bad shape when we got there, his uncle had flayed his back with a belt and the lacerations were infected. The doctor also said that he had extensive rectal damage."

Fury pinched the bridge of his nose. It was hard enough to control Stark on a normal day, there was no way he would be able to keep him from killing his son's relatives. To be honest, he didn't want to.

"From what I witnessed, Bruce and Clint are already attached to the boy and I heard that Steve feels just as strongly. When Bruce heard about the rapes he lost it and the Hulk came out. It's not just Tony that we have to worry about going after the boy's relatives, it's the Avengers as well."

Fury cursed, feeling a migraine coming on.

"That's not all, sir," Coulson said reluctantly. "The boy is from England, and his name is Harry James Potter."

Fury cursed. "Please tell me that he doesn't have a lightening bolt scar on his forehead?"

"Sorry, sir, can't do that."

"Shit, are you telling me that the Harry Potter, the-boy-who-lived, is Tony Stark's son?" Fury asked, rubbing at his throbbing temples.

"Well, I never saw the boy in person before, but he sure as hell fits the description of Harry Potter from the wizarding world."

"Lily Potter had an affair with Tony Stark, how the hell did that happen? I met the woman once when my brother and her husband were graduating from the Auror Academy and she didn't seem like someone that would cheat on her husband."

Coulson scratched the back of his neck, he still couldn't believe that Tony played for both teams. "Tony as no recollection of sleeping with Lily Potter, but he does fondly remember James Potter."

Groaning, Fury dropped his head onto the table. "Are you telling me that Harry Potter is actually the son of James Potter and Tony Stark." At seeing Coulson nod, Fury waved him away. "I can't deal with this right now. I will call my brother and ask what he knows about the Potter boy, but I'm not going to tell him that he is here in America. Keep a lid on this for now, don't even tell Tony. We will wait and see how things play out."

"Yes, sir," Coulson said, turning and leaving the directors office.

***HP

"Did he give the name of the boarding school he attended?" Tony asked the now greenless Bruce.

"No, he just said that it was in Scotland and it had no electric. He had never even heard of Tony Stark, The Avengers or the alien attack on New York." Bruce was sitting at Harry's bedside feeling surprisingly better after letting the other guy out for a while.

"Jarvis, bring up every boarding school in Scotland." Tony ordered.

Tony scrolled through all the boarding schools in Scotland, but none of them fit the description of his son's. How could a school not have electricity, especially in Scotland where the winters were bad. "Something isn't right about all of this," he grumbled.

"Maybe when Harry gets comfortable around us, he will tell us everything." Bruce suggested. "Are you sure you don't recognize his mother, she was very pretty?"

Tony nervously took a sip of his drink. "Lily I have never seen before, her husband on the other hand." Tony winked at Bruce.

"Are you saying that you and he..."

Tony raised his glass to Bruce. "All night long."

Bruce opened his mouth to say something, but nothing came out. He never imagined that Tony was bisexual.

"What's the matter, doc, never experimented with the same sex before?" Tony smirked.

"I...well...I... I, well, it was a long time ago." Bruce stuttered.

"You dirty dog, you," Tony chuckled. "It's always the quiet ones." Tony winked again at Bruce handing him a drink.

Bruce took a sip, cringing at the amount of alcohol that was in it. "Tony, why in the hell do you have a bar in your bedroom."

"Easy, so I don't have to parade naked through the house to get a drink. I have a fine ass, doc, and I don't want you getting ideas. I may enjoy a man warming my bed, but I strictly top."

Bruce closed his eyes, groaning. "Don't worry, your ass is safe from me."

"What about your ass, doc, is it safe from me?" Tony chuckled when Bruce choked on his drink.

Their conversation came to a halt when Pepper entered the room carrying a few bags.

"Send a woman out to retrieve a pair of pajamas from a teenager's room and she comes back an hour later with an arm full of bags, and I'm sure that my bank account is considerably lighter," Tony joked.

"Well, I went to said teenager's room but I couldn't open his trunk. I don't know what kind of locks he has, but they're pretty impressive. I figured since whatever he has is going to be rags anyway, I would just run out and buy him some nice new stuff."

"Impressive locks you say?" Tony asked perking up.

Pepper sighed. "Tony, leave Harry's stuff alone."

"What? I'm not going to snoop his stuff, I just want to see these locks." Tony brushed past Pepper.

Bruce reluctantly got up to follow Tony, he wanted to make sure that Tony didn't root through Harry's personal possessions. "Jarvis, let me know if Harry starts waking."

"I am monitoring his vitals and will know as soon as he starts waking."

"I will stay with him, Bruce," Pepper said as she opened the bags and started sorting through the clothes. She didn't get him much, just a few things to hold him over until he was up to shopping for himself.

When Bruce entered Harry's room, Tony was walking around Harry's old beat up school trunk. "I don't know what she was talking about," Tony muttered. "I don't see any locks on this trunk." Kneeling down, he tugged on the lid fully expecting it to pop open.

"Well, that's interesting," Tony said when the lid didn't budge. Tilting the trunk back, he started looking for a key. "I don't see a key hole anywhere on this trunk, how the hell is it locked?" Running his hands all over it, he grew even more excited when he didn't find a secret button or a control panel. He loved a mystery to solve, and this was very mysterious.

Despite being curious, Bruce didn't feel that it was right messing with Harry's stuff. Teenagers were very funny with people touching what was theirs, and right now it was very important that they gain Harry's trust. "Tony, come on let's leave Harry's room. You wouldn't want someone messing with your stuff."

Tony stepped away from the truck pouting. "Fine, I'll leave it...for now." Tony turned towards the door then stopped. "Jarvis, scan the trunk and see if you pick up anything."

"Sir, there is a disturbance around the trunk, but I can't identify what it is."

Tony excitedly stepped towards the trunk, but was forced to stop when Bruce grabbed his arm. "Oh, come on," he whined.

"No," Bruce said tugging on Tony's arm. "Come on, Harry should be waking any minute."


	4. Chapter 4

I do not own Harry Potter or the Avengers..

*** PLEASE READ... I have created a FB page and I invite everyone to shoot me a friends request. I would loving talking and getting to know you all better. I would love to hear your ideas and bounce some off you. You will find me under Potter Obsessed...

***HP

Bruce was hooking Harry up to another bag of fluids when he saw his fingers start twitching. "He's waking," he said softly, alerting everyone who was in the room. Tony was in a chair next to Harry's bed, Pepper was working on some papers at Tony's desk, Steve was looking out the window, and Clint was leaning against the door. Everyone had been extremely concerned for the boy that had stolen their hearts in such a short amount of time.

Harry had been asleep longer than what anyone had expected. It was now early evening the following day, which meant that Harry had been asleep for over twenty four hours. In that time, Tony and Bruce had hardly left Harry's bedside. The others checked in regularly, but went about their daily routine despite worrying about the small, sick boy back at Stark Tower.

"Should we go?" Steve asked, not wanting to, but also not wanting to overwhelm the boy.

Before anyone could answer, Harry started whimpering.

Tony jumped to his feet hovering nervously over his son. He didn't know how to do this comforting thing, but he would do whatever he had to do to help his son. It wasn't like his dad was the ideal role model, the man was never around and he was obsessed with finding Captain America. As soon as he could, his father had shipped him off to boarding school and only had minimal contact with him after that.

Harry was feeling confused and disoriented. He knew that he wasn't in his bed in the Gryffindor tower, the hospital wing, or his hard lumpy bed at the Dursley's. The bed he was in was so comfortable that it felt like he was sleeping on a cloud. The comforter was so warm and plush that he wanted to burrow down into it and never come out again. He wasn't sure where he was or who was with him, his head felt heavy and fuzzy.

"Harry, can you hear me?" Bruce asked softly not wanting to startle the small teen.

Harry tensed and his heart started pounding hard in his chest. Who was that? He didn't recognize the voice and it was a males voice. It never boded well for him when he woke with a strange man in his room. It wouldn't be the first time that Uncle Vernon sent someone up to have their way with him while he was sleeping and for him to wake with a stranger on top of him.

The increased beeping of the heart monitor caught everyone's attention. "Harry, calm down, there's no reason to be scared. You are at Stark Tower with me, Bruce Banner, and your father, Tony Stark. Clint Barton is also here along with Steve Rogers and Pepper Potts. You passed out on us yesterday and you have had us all very concerned."

Harry groaned as everything started coming back to him. He remembered now finding out that Lily wasn't his mom, that James was his mom and Tony was his dad. He remembered being in horrible pain from the whipping his uncle gave him and feeling very sick and tired.

"No, no, no," Harry cried weakly, when it dawned on him that he passed out in front of Tony and Pepper. They must know...they must all know what happened to him.

"Hey, little chef, are you going to open your eyes for us?" Tony asked, taking a seat on the side of Harry's bed.

Harry's eyes snapped open and he quickly scooted away from Tony's touch. It's not that he didn't was his father to touch him, he just didn't want anyone to touch him. "What the hell!" he cried out when he felt a painful tug on his arm.

"No, Harry, don't pull it out," Bruce warned, gently grabbing Harry's hand to prevent him from pulling out the IV. "You are very sick and need this to get the meds into your system."

Harry yanked his arm out of Bruce's grip and let it fall onto the bed. He was still feeling extremely dizzy and sick to his stomach. Not wanting to see the pity on their faces, he closed his eyes and turned his head away.

Tony looked sadly down at his son. "Harry, can I get you something to eat or drink? You have been out of it for twenty four hours."

Keeping his head turned away, Harry shook his head no.

"Unfortunately for you, you are going to eat something anyway," Bruce said firmly. "You are not going to get better if you don't eat something. Now I may suck at cooking, but I think I can handle opening a can of vegetable soup and a box of crackers. Now if you will excuse me, I will be back in ten minutes."

Harry watched Bruce leave, a small smile tugging at his lips. "He reminds me of my best friend's mother."

Clint chuckled. "That's great, you comparing Bruce to a mother. I can just picture the big green guy wearing an apron and fuzzy pink bunny slippers."

Harry smiled shyly at Clint. He had thought for sure that they would be demanding answers, but they weren't treating him any different then before. He could feel the bandages on his back so they knew that he had been whipped, and if they saw his back, then they saw the bite marks.

"You're one stubborn, tough little shit, I'll give you that much." Tony said, smirking at his son. "Not only are those wounds infected, but you also have blood poisoning. I go from finding out that I'm a dad, to finding out that you were close to dying... all in less than an hour." Tony tapped the arc reactor on his chest. "Your old man has a bad ticker and this is what's keeping him alive. My heart can't handle this kind of stress. I haven't left your side since you passed out. I think I'm going to design a bubble for you to live in so nothing or no one can ever hurt you again."

Harry nervously looked at his father, giving him an uncertain smile. He didn't think that the man was mad at him, but he wasn't positive. It felt weird, a good kind of weird though, to know that the father he had just met had gotten scared because he was sick. He couldn't believe that Tony had stayed with him the entire time. Even Sirius after third task had left him when Dumbledore sent him to do something, and he had begged Sirius to stay with him. He had just seen a boy get murdered, the resurrection of Voldemort, had battled the evil bastard and been crucio'd...the last thing he wanted was to be alone. He wanted Sirius to stay with him, make him feel safe, even if it was only as Padfoot. Despite his pleading, Sirius had left him to do Dumbledore's bidding. For some reason, he had never been important enough to be put first.

"You... You really stayed?" Harry asked in a small and trembling voice.

"Are you kidding me?" Steve chuckled, taking Tony's seat by the bed. "Both Tony and Bruce refused to leave. Wait until you see this," Steve turned and smirked at Tony. "Jarvis, bring up the picture that I had you take last night."

"What picture, what are you talking about?" Tony asked looking a little concerned.

Harry couldn't stop the snort like laughter that burst from his lips when the picture popped up on the very large screen. Both Tony and Bruce were sleeping on the couch that was in the back of the room, practically on top of each other. Bruce had his head on Tony's shoulder and arm thrown across his chest, and Tony had his arms wrapped around Bruce with one leg across his lap.

"Oh, that's priceless," Clint howled. "I think we should make that the Avengers Christmas card."

Tony put his face into his hands, moaning. "You better get that picture down before mother sees it, you know what happens when he gets angry."

Harry giggled hard, wiping the tears from his eyes. He couldn't believe how comfortable he was around a group of guys that he had just met. It's was weird, but they honestly seemed to care about him.

Steve reached out and lightly brushed his hand across Harry's. "Honestly though, we have all been very worried about you. When not working, myself, Clint and Pepper have been here, and when we were working, we were constantly calling to check in on you. We may be a bit dysfunctional, but we are a family and we are here for each other. Please remember that you can come to us with anything."

Harry swallowed the lump that was in his throat. The Weasley's and Sirius cared for him, but they never called him family. Family was something that he desperately yearned for, and he couldn't believe that these people were so quick to make him part of theirs. Turning his head, he wiped at his eyes before the tears could fall.

Steve got up from the chair, nodding to Tony. He meant what he said, they were a family and he would be there to help Harry. The boy had known nothing but pain and hate, it was time that he learned what a loving family could be like. They may bicker, tease and beat the shit out of each other, but they were still a family.

After getting control of his emotions, Harry turned back to Tony. "How long do I have to leave this in?" he asked, picking at the itchy tape that was stuck to his arm and firmly holding the IV in place.

"Until mother says so," Tony chuckled. "But I'm going to guess at least a few more days. Harry, I wasn't joking when I said you were dying," Tony said seriously.

Harry lowered his head. "M'sorry," he mumbled.

Tony sighed. "Harry, we're not mad at you, you just scared the shit out of us. Now, you know that we have a million questions, but until you are feeling better, we promise to not nag you too much."

Harry flinched at the mention of questions. He knew what they were going to ask him, but there was no way that he could tell them the truth.

***HP

Remus pinched the bridge of his nose, counting to ten. It was close to the full moon and Sirius was getting on his last nerve. "Would you please stop tapping your mug on the table," he growled, sounding more like Moony than his human self.

Sirius put his mug on the table and looked sheepishly at Remus. "Sorry, I'm just worried about Harry. We shouldn't have left him all alone after the third task, he was really shook up."

"Harry understands that we had work to do." Remus sighed, he had already had this conversation with his best friend.

"Would you at fourteen?" Sirius snapped. "Harry was scared and in pain, he pleaded with me to stay with him, but I just patted him on the head and trotted out the door. Do you think that's how James wanted us to treat his little boy? No, James would have wanted us to remain at his bedside comforting him and being there incase he woke with nightmares. Remus, I can still see the pain in his eyes as I walked out the door."

Remus took a seat at the table, he had been feeling guilty as well. It was the reason why he was more edgy than normal this close to the full moon. Moony had wanted to remain at his pup's side. He could smell the fear and pain on their pup and he didn't miss how his body trembled from the crucio's he had been put under. Moony had been pissed that they had once again abandoned their pup when he needed them, and he was sure that the wolf was going to punish him this month for it.

"I asked Harry to send me an owl the second he returned home, and he promised he would. It's been three days, Remy, and we haven't heard anything."

"Sirius, Harry is probably just catching up with his muggle friends." Remus wrapped his hands tight around his mug, trying to hide his trembling. Moony was really angry with him and was trying to take over.

"Harry doesn't have..."

"muggle friends, " Fred and George said, taking a seat at the dingy old table. They were surprised when after leaving the train, their parents brought them all here instead of the Burrow. It seemed that now that scary and ugly was back, Dumbledore wanted them at this dark, dreary dump where they would be safer and could help clean up the place. The headmaster planned on using Sirius' old family home as the new headquarters for The Order of the Phoenix.

"What I don't understand..."

"if this place is the safest place other than Hogwatrs..."

"Why can't Harry stay here?" Both twins finished at the same time.

Remus rubbed his aching temples, the twin talk was a little too much this close to the full moon. Normally Moony found the pair amusing, but today he was clawing at his skull, howling.

"Professor Dumbledore has special wards at Harry's aunt and uncle's house that not only protects him, but also them." Remus reassured the pair. "Harry will be joining us after his birthday."

Fred snorted. "Like Harry would care if something happened to those monsters."

George smacked Fred, giving him a look that said 'shut the hell up.' Harry had never came out and told them about the abuse, but they accidentally stumbled upon him one evening showering in the Quidditch locker room. It was the first practice of the season and Fred had left his tie on the bench so they had to return for it. They had never questioned why Harry always waited until after everyone left the locker room before showering, they just assumed that he was shy.

It was George that spotted Harry's bruised and heavily scarred back first. When they confronted the shaking twelve year old he tried to say that he got in a fight with his cousin and that it was no big deal. When they pointed out that there were scars years old, he promised them not to say anything, then told them how his uncle would take a belt to his back if he didn't get his chores done. They knew that there was more to the story just from seeing the large handprint bruises on his thin body, but by that time Harry was crying hysterically and they didn't want to upset him more. They made Harry promise to owl him every few days during summer break so that they knew that he was ok, and they always helped patch him up when they first saw him again after break.

"What's that supposed to mean?" Sirius growled, eyes flashing dangerously. Since meeting Harry last year, he alway had a funny feeling that something wasn't right with Harry's home life. What thirteen year old boy immediately agrees to move in with a stranger they just meant...especially one looking as scary as he did at the time?

George flashed Fred a warning look. "Nothing, it's just that Harry doesn't always get along with his aunt and uncle." George tugged Fred to his feet. "Come on, brother of mine, mom wants us to tackle the backyard today. If we're lucky, we can find some useful ingredients for our new prank line." Both boys took off before Sirius could question them more.

"That's it, I'm going to check on Harry." Sirius jumped to his feet and headed for the door.

"Sirius, sit back down," Remus yelled. "You are an escaped prisoner with orders to be kissed on sight. How do you think Harry will feel when he hears that his godfather got his soul sucked out all because he wanted to check on him?"

Paling, Sirius collapsed back into his chair trembling slightly.

"Now, Dumbledore will be here this evening for an Order meeting, we will discuss bringing Harry here early then."

Sirius wasn't happy, but he reluctantly agreed with Remus.

***HP

"I can make it to the living room myself, you know." Harry grumbled.

Steve grinned down at the tiny teen. He thought he was tiny at that age, but Harry wasn't anywhere near the size that he was. "I'm sure you can, but you have been in bed for five days. Besides, why force yourself to do more than what you're ready when you have a tower full of people just waiting to help you." Steve had his arm looped around Harry's and was helping him to the couch. Despite his protests, Harry was still very weak and sick from the blood poisoning. He had originally wrapped his arm around Harry's waist so he could better support him, but as soon as he touched him, Harry had locked up and stopped breathing until he removed his arm. He had never dealt with anyone as badly abused as Harry, but he started reading books on the subject so he could better educate himself.

"Hey, just be thankful that Bruce isn't here. He would go Hulk on us if he knew that we let you out of bed," Clint was walking next to them pushing Harry's IV pole. Know matter how hard Harry begged, Bruce wouldn't take out the IV. Harry was still very sick and he refused to remove it until he was one hundred precent better.

"I just needed to get out of that bed for a while, I was about to go crazy." Harry said a little breathlessly. Just that short trip from the bedroom to the living room was winding him.

Despite Harry protesting that he was fine sitting on the floor, Steve helped him get settled on the couch. He had already made a nice little bed out of the couch with a sheet, pillow and blanket. "What movie would you like to watch?"

Harry rested against the pillow willing away the spinning in his head. "How about Lord of The Rings? My friend told me that it was pretty good." Seamus did say that it was good and the wizard in it reminded him of a cooler Dumbledore. The last five days Tony had him watch every Star Wars movie and cartoon ever created, he was more than ready for a change.

Steve couldn't help but glance at Harry during the movie. How could anyone hurt another human being so badly, especially their own flesh and blood? Despite what the teen had been through, Harry was a very sweet and caring, beautiful boy. He tried not to think about the abuse Harry suffered, but he couldn't help replay in his mind Clint telling him that Harry had been sexually abused since he was a small child. How the hell could a grown man force themselves on a small child? Harry must have been terrified, and at that age he wouldn't have understood what was happening. He himself was still a virgin with no plans of losing his virginity until he found the person he could spend the rest of his life with. His ideals may be old fashioned for this day of age, but it was how he was raised.

Steve must have spaced out while staring at Harry because the next thing he knew, Clint was waving his hand in front of his face. "You alright there, Cap?"

Steve nodded his head. "How long has he been asleep?" he whispered, feeling a little confused. He must have been really out if it because he didn't remember Harry falling asleep.

"For a little over forty five minutes now," Clint chuckled. "What's going on with you? You have been staring at him since before he crashed and you didn't even realize that he was sleeping."

Steve rubbed his eyes, groaning. "I'm just trying to wrap my head around everything he has been through."

"I don't think we will ever understand how somebody could be so cruel...and we have seen a lot." Clint said sadly. "That uncle of his is one sick bastard that's going to get what he has coming to him."

Steve jumped to his feet and started pacing. "We were so worried about Harry that we didn't even think about any other innocents that the man could be out there hurting right now. We have to stop him before he rapes another child."

"Relax, Cap," Clint said resting his hand on the soldier's shoulders. "Fury has had an agent on his tail since he heard about Harry. Right now the pig is too busy getting settled into his new house, but he has been accessing child pornagrphy websites, so it's only a matter of time. This is good though, Tony has been able to track the locations of the sites he's been viewing and so far they busted fifty people involved in child sex trafficking and child pornagrphy. They have also rescued thirty five children, all under the age of fifteen."

"Wow, I-I didn't know that Tony was doing that. Is that why he hasn't gone after them yet for what they did to Harry?"

Clint nodded his head. "It was actually Tony's idea. See, a lot of these sites you can only access if you were invited by the scums who run them, you just can't find them in a google search. After you become a member and pay a hefty fee, you have unlimited access to all the video's and pictures. Tony was able to bug Dursley's home and work computers so when he logs onto these sites, he's getting all the information he needs to track down their locations. Tony is anxious to go after Dursley himself, but he wants to save as many kids as he can first and put the child raping fuckers behind bars."

"That is amazing," Steve said in awe, he had no clue that Tony had organized that and was saving all those kids. Tony had hardly left Harry's side this past week, he must have been working through the night tracking those bastards down.

"That's not all though. Tony is also helping cover medical fees and counseling for all the children that they have rescued so far. Some kids were kidnapped and shipped over from other countries, and others were kidnapped from right here in the United States. For those that don't have families, he's helping them find foster homes and buying them the essentials like clothes, toys and whatever else they need. He has become passionate in not only saving these kids, capturing those responsible, but also helping them recover from their horrific ordeal.

Steve shook his head, completely blown away by Stark's generosity. "Why hasn't there been anything on the news about it?"

"Right now they're keeping it out of the media because they're afraid that those involved will shut down their organizations, murder the kids that they currently have and then wait for everything to blow over before starting it up again. Tony wants to get as many of those bastards as he can now and save as many kids as he can."

"I want to help," Steve said adamantly. "I'm this big American hero and I'm ashamed that I never thought to help these kids before."

"Hey, don't beat yourself up, Cap, you haven't been thawed out all that long." Clint joked. "We are the ones that should be ashamed. We have all this power, brains and technology behind us and yet we never bothered to help these children. It's sad that it took one of our own being hurt to give us the kick in the ass we needed to save these children and prevent it from happening to more innocents."

Harry quietly pulled the blanket up over his head so Steve and Clint wouldn't know that he was awake...and crying. He couldn't believe what his father was doing. He knew that he wasn't the only kid that his uncle hurt, his uncle took great pride in bragging about the other boys that he raped while forcing him to suck his dick. It always made him hate himself because despite wishing that he could help these other boys, he was also glad that his uncle or one of his acquaintances were leaving him alone for the night. Never in a million years would he wish what he went through on another human being...not even his worst enemy, but there were times when he was in so much pain, that he was relieved that they found some other boy to beat and fuck for a while. The times that he thought that, he was so disgusted and ashamed with himself, that he took a razor to his arms as punishment.

'One of our own.' Harry kept repeating that over and over in his head while he silently cried himself back to sleep. Clint had called him one of theirs, he finally belonged to somebody and they actually cared about him. His father was working to end the suffering of kids at the hands of men like Uncle Vernon, Mr. Grunning and Mr. Mason. There were other men that Uncle Vernon shared him with, but those three were the most frequent and the worst. He had never told anyone what his uncle did to him, and he never wanted to, but maybe, just maybe, he could trust his father.

***HP

"Will it hurt?"

Bruce gave the scared boy a reassuring smile. "The worst part is going to be peeling the tape off, you won't even feel the IV coming out."

Harry jerkily nodded his head staring between Bruce and the IV that was finally going to be removed. He had been at Stark Tower for a little over a week now and his life had never been better. He was still confined to his bed or the couch, but he hoped that would end now that Bruce had finally agreed that he was healthy enough to have the IV removed. As much as he loved not having endless chores to do, he was starting to feel a bit stir crazy just sitting around doing nothing. He also didn't want his new family to think that he was lazy and couldn't pull his own weight. Deep down, he was afraid that if he didn't help out, that they would send him back to uncle Vernon. For the first time in his life he wasn't somebody's punching bag, fuck toy, or wizarding hero...he was just Harry. He wasn't sure of who 'just Harry' was, but hoped to discover him with the help of his new family.

So far no questions have been asked about his past home life, but he knew as soon as Bruce cleared him, his father was going to have a million questions. He didn't want to tell him what he used to do...what those men used to do to him, but he was starting to feel that he could trust his father. From what he heard when people thought he was sleeping, his father had now saved a couple hundred kids from perverts like uncle Vernon. The amount of sex offenders caught was so high that they could no longer keep it from the media. No one yet know that it was Tony Stark responsible for all the arrests, and his father was hoping to keep it that way. His father was afraid that when the media found out that he had a son, the sex offenders would retaliate by going after him.

"Damn," Harry cursed, when Bruce quickly peeled to tape back.

Burst chuckled, "it's better to be fast and get it over with, then slow and painful."

"I hate to tell you this, but it was still painful," Harry moaned.

"Sorry," Bruce grimaced. He really did hate causing Harry more pain.

Harry shook his head. "It's alright, nothing I can't handle."

Bruise quickly pulled out the IV and placed a band-Aid over the wound. "Leave this on for a few hours, you can remove it before bed."

"Thanks," Harry said, giving Bruce a shy smile.

"I have work to do in the lab for a few hours, will you be alright up here on your own until everyone returns?" Tony, Steve and Clint where in a meeting with Fury, but Bruce stayed behind to keep Harry company. Since Harry moved in, one of the Avengers had remained in the Tower somewhere incase Harry needed someone. When Harry nodded, Bruce continued. "You are no longer restricted, but you still must take it easy. No strenuous work for at least a couple more weeks."

Grinning, Harry nodded his head. He was so happy that he could finally get up and move around.

"Alright, well you know how to contact me if you need me. Remember take it easy, just watch TV or something." Bruce said, giving Harry a stern look. "As soon as you're up to it, we will show you around New York City, and take you shopping."

Harry started to nervously fiddle with his shirt. He didn't know if he really wanted to leave the tower, but the city looked really interesting from the window. "Will you go with me when I go out?" he asked softly.

"If you want me to, I will. We will never leave you alone somewhere where you were not comfortable." Bruce said sincerely.

Harry released the breath that he had been holding. He felt safe around the Avengers, especially Bruce. "Thank you," he whispered.

***HP

"I don't think that this is what mother had in mind when he said to take it easy," Tony chuckled.

Harry jumped, the glass slipping from his startled hands, and since his arm was still in a cast, he wasn't able to catch it before it hit the kitchen floor, shattering. "I-I I'm sorry, I'm sorry. I didn't mean to drop it." Harry quickly fell to his knees and started picking up the broken pieces. He was trembling so bad that he wasn't careful and the glass cut into his hand.

Steve was the first to react by picking up Harry and placing him on the countertop. Harry was so upset that he kept mumbling, 'I'm sorry, I'm sorry,' over and over again. It didn't even seem like he noticed the glass sticking out of his palm.

"Hey, accidents happen, it's no big deal," Steve said trying to reassure the distressed boy. Steve gently took Harry's hand in his so he could examine the damage.

"I-I didn't hear you come in, I'm sorry," Harry cried trying to hold back his tears. The last time he broke a glass his aunt poured hot grease on his back as he was cleaning the glass up. He was only six at the time, but he remembered it like it was only yesterday.

Tony place a medical kit on the counter next to Harry. "Hey, I didn't like those glasses anyway. After we get you cleaned up, I say we break the rest of them." As Steve held out Harry's hand, Tony gently removed the glass shard and put some anabiotic ointment on it and a band-Aid. The cut was bleeding, but it wasn't that deep.

"I really am sorry, I didn't mean to drop the glass. I-I just didn't hear you come in. I'll pay you back, I promise. I got some money in my trunk, I'll buy you a whole new set." Harry couldn't stop the tears from falling.

"Harry, I'm more worried about you than some stupid glass. Are you hurt anywhere else?" Tony asked trying to check the rest of his body for injuries. "I swear kid, I'm going to immediately get started on that bubble suit for you."

Harry quickly jumped off the counter, stumbling when he hit the ground harder than what he was expecting. "I'll clean it up, I was the one stupid enough to drop it," he cried, rushing to Clint and grabbing the broom from his hand. Before Harry could start sweeping, Steve yanked the broom out of Harry's hand.

Tony approached his son like he was approaching a wild animal. Harry was trembling, panting and crying, he looked like he was on the verge of a panic attack. "Harry, it smells delicious in here, we could smell the food from the lobby." Gently he steered Harry away from the shattered glass and towards the back of the kitchen. He was hoping to distract him long enough for Tony and Steve to clean up the mess. "What did you cook?"

Harry tried to look over to Steve and Clint, but his father lightly cupped his face and turned him back towards him.

"Where you making us all dinner?" Tony just noticed the beautifully set table that was already weighted down with the most delectable smelling foods that had ever hit his nose.

Harry's eyes were still drifting back to Steve and Clint. "I can clean up the mess," he whispered softly. "It's my mess, I did it, I broke it."

"There is no more mess, see," Tony said, pointing to the now glass free floor. "Things get broken around here on a daily basis. If it isn't me breaking something with a new invention, than it's Bruce taking out an entire floor as the Hulk. Hell, not even a month ago Legolas took out the eighty inch tv we had in the living room when he accidentally threw the Nintendo WII remote through it when playing tennis."

Harry looked over at Clint who was nodding his head and chuckling.

Steven scratched the back of his head blushing. "A few days before you got here, I accidentally tossed a weight threw the gym window."

Clint smirked at Tony. "Let's not forget New Years, Stark, when you wanted to out do Times Square's fireworks and you blew half the roof off.

"Yes well, I had planned on redesigning that section of the roof anyway." Tony snickered. "You have to admit, it was one hell of a way to ring in the New Year. See, little chef, you fit in perfect with the rest of us."

Harry gave everyone a shy smile. "You really blew half the roof off?" he asked, clearly not believing that he could actually blow half the roof off and laugh about it.

Tony grinned at his son. "Wait until you see the footage of it, especially in slow motion. Remind me after dinner, I got video from four different angles."

Steve slowly walked towards the table. "Harry," he moaned. "Is that a turkey dinner with all the trimmings?" Everyone could clearly hear his stomach rumbling.

Harry shrugged his shoulders, blushing. "I overheard you telling Pepper that it was your favorite meal and you hadn't had it since before you became Captain America."

Steve grasped the chair with his large hand, steadying himself. "Harry, you don't know what this means to me. My parents were very poor Irish immigrants, but my father made sure that every Thanksgiving we had the complete turkey dinner with all the trimmings. My father saved for months so we could afford it, and it was the only day of the year that we ate like royalty. My father died when I was very young and my mother did her very best to withhold the Thanksgiving tradition. She died from pneumonia when I was a teen, that was the last time I ever had a full turkey dinner."

Harry paled when it looked like Steve was going to cry. Swallowing back his own tears, he laid a trembling hand over Steve's. "I'm sorry if I brought up painful memories. When I heard you telling Pepper that it was your favorite, I thought I would make it as a way of saying thank you for being nice to me," Harry looked around the room at Tony, Clint, and now Bruce. Bruce must have came in during Steve's story because he didn't remember seeing him before. "I want to make you all something special, you have all been so kind to me."

Steve squeezed Harry's hand. "They're not painful memories, Harry, they're wonderful memories. Thank you so much for doing this for me."

Tony cleared his throat. "Harry, you don't have to thank us for being kind. We..."

"But, I do," Harry cried, interrupting Tony. "Besides, I love to cook."

Bruce walked up to the table. "Harry, this looks and smells amazing, but why are there only four chairs?"

"Pepper was by earlier, she felt bad about missing dinner, but she said she had a hot date."

Bruce pinched the bridge of his nose. It may have only been a little over a week since Harry had moved in with them, but he had hoped that the boy had realized that he was part of the family. "Harry, there are four chairs, but five of us." he pointed out.

Harry dropped his head, shrugging his shoulders. "I made the dinner for you guys," he said softly.

"Wait!," Steve cried, looking around the table and counting the chairs for the first time. "You weren't going to join us for dinner even though you worked all day cooking it?"

"I-I...well,"

Tony held up his hand before anyone could say anything more. His son had been horribly abused and neglected since he was a baby, he wouldn't be making a miraculous recovery overnight. "Capsicle, get another chair for Harry. We all eat together or no one eats it all."

Warmth filled Harry's heart as he watched everyone devour his dinner. Steve had been continuously moaning throughout the entire dinner. Of course his father couldn't pass up hitting him with a few perverted jokes. It was nice to be able to sit down at a family dinner, and not have to wait in the dark corner for them to finish so he could clean up their mess.

***HP

Harry was sitting at the table nervously bouncing his leg as everyone else cleaned up the dinner mess and did the dishes. It didn't feel right just sitting there as everyone else did the work, but they insisted that he remain sitting on his bottom. Not that there was much leftovers to clean up, he was still in awe with the amount of food these men could pack away...especially Steve and Bruce.

"Sir, there is a wild white owl flapping at the window in young Harry's room trying to get in, would you like me to give it a small electrical shock?" Jarvis asked.

"No!" Harry screamed, jumping up and racing to his room. "Please don't hurt her."

The four startled men looked at each other, then took off after the teen. By the time they got to the room, Harry was standing in the middle of his room with the balcony door wide open, and a large white snowy owl perched on his shoulder grooming his hair.

"Whoa, bird whisperer, where'd the come owl from?" Tony asked taking tentative step closer to his son."

Harry took a step back, afraid that they might think that Hedwig was a wild owl and hurt her. "She's mine," he said, bringing his hand up and allowing her to affectionately nip his fingers. "She's been with me for four years."

"And here I thought a dog was a boy's best friend?" Tony took another step closer, he could tell that Harry was afraid that he was going to hurt his pet. "She's beautiful," he said in awe. "Did she fly all the way over here from England?"

Harry nodded his head. "Hedwig is the smartest, she always knows where to find me."

Clint also took a step closer so he could get a better look. Birds had always fascinated him when growing up. "I have never seen one like her before. How did you train her?"

Hedwig ruffled her feathers and turned her head away from Clint. "Hedwig isn't trained," Harry said chuckling. "She comes and goes as she pleases. She's here because she loves me."

Tony started scratching his chin, looking from Hedwig to the balcony door, then back again. "I'll have to make some kind of owl doggie door so you won't have to leave your door open all the time." he said thoughtfully.

Harry's eyes got wide as he stared at Tony. "You mean, you don't mind her staying?"

Tony smirked. "Harry, if you care about that bird, then she can stay. But I warn you now, she's is a pretty little thing and bird brain over there," Tony pointed to Clint. "has a thing for avians. He may whisk her away to his love nest."

Giggling, Harry looked to Clint who was wagging his eyebrows up and down. "Thank you, Tony," Harry still wasn't comfortable with calling Tony father or dad. "I promise that she will always be on her best behavior."

***HP

After getting Hedwig settled in, Harry made his way back to the kitchen so he could get dessert ready. He had never had a Thanksgiving dinner before so he had to ask Jarvis what foods they typically had for dinner and dessert. He wasn't sure what everybody liked so he made an apple pie, pumpkin pie, and blueberry cheesecake for Tony. He hoped with three choices there would be something on the table for everyone.

"Jarvis, can you please ask Tony, Clint, Bruce and Steve to come to the kitchen?" He didn't have the desserts on display earlier so none of them knew that he had made any.

When Jarvis' voice came out of nowhere, Harry could have sworn that it was chuckling. "All four are sprinting towards the kitchen, young Harry."

Harry had all the desserts, plates, silverware, and a gallon of vanilla ice cream to go with the warm apple pie on the table by the time the guys burst through the door.

"Please tell me that's apple pie that I'm smelling," Steve moaned.

Harry nodded his head. "I also have pumpkin pie and blueberry cheesecake."

Tony's eyes about popped out of his head. "Blue... Blueberry cheesecake," he stuttered.

"Well, I don't know about you guys," Bruce said looking eagerly at the table. "but I'm having one of everything."

As Tony was making his way through his third slice of blueberry cheesecake... The best blueberry cheesecake he had ever eaten. He was trying to work up the courage to start asking Harry about his past. He knew that Harry would get upset, but he needed to know what happened to him. Wanting to start off slow, he asked him about his school first.

"So, Harry, tell me about your boarding school." Tony didn't miss how Harry immediately tensed up.

Harry didn't know what to say, he didn't want his new family finding out about his magic. Magic was the reason why the Dursley's despised him, and he didn't want to lose Tony and everybody else. They too would think that he was nothing but a freak, and probably ship him back to his aunt and uncle.

"There's really not much to say," Harry answered lowering his eyes. "It was just a small boarding school that my aunt and uncle shipped me off to."

"Did you like it there?" Steve asked curiously.

Harry was quiet for a minute. "Maybe at first, but it's very old-fashioned. It did get me away from my relatives for most of the year, so I guess it wasn't that bad."

"Are you planning to return in the fall?" Tony asked hoping that the answer was no. He was just getting to know his son, and he didn't like the thought of him being so far away.

"No!" Harry said not even needing to think about it. He had never truly been happy there, he could never be himself. Nobody had ever cared for him there the way everyone here did, he had never felt as safe as he did here. No, he did not want to return the Hogwarts in the fall.

"Excellent," Tony said happily, shoving another fork full of blueberry cheesecake into his mouth. "We will find a school here to enroll you in, or you can be homeschooled with private tutors. The choice is yours."

Harry gave Tony a blinding smile feeling like the weight of the world had just been lifted off his small shoulders. Yes, he felt bad leaving the wizarding world to deal with Voldemort, but why should he be the one who has to defeat him? He was just a kid, and the wizarding world was constantly turning their backs on him. Almost every day he was on the front page of the Daily Profit, and most of the time they were making fun of him or accusing him of something that he didn't do. Last year was especially bad with the Tri-Wizard tournament. Rita Skeeter was constantly writing lies about him, one minute he was the tragic little hero, and the next he was an attention seeking liar. If he wasn't getting fan mail in the morning, he was getting hate mail laced with curses and hexes. He just wanted to forget about the past four years, he wanted a new start with a new family.

"What was the name of your boarding school?" Tony asked, watching his sons facial expressions. The one thing he did learn about Harry in the past week, was that he could not tell a lie. When Harry lied, he didn't make eye contact and he started to nervously fiddle with something. It wasn't that Harry lied a lot, just when asked a question that he didn't want to answer. His son had a lot of secrets, and he hoped that eventually he would trust him with them. He wouldn't push though, Harry had been hurt enough. He would be patient, even if it took years.

Harry dropped his eye to his plate of unfinished pumpkin pie and started dragging his fork through the orange goo'y mess. "H- Ho... Hope Well Academy,"

Lie, Tony thought smirking to himself. Looking to Bruce, Clint and Steve, he could tell that they also knew that Harry was lying.

"What did you learn there?" Tony asked. "Bruce was telling me that there was no electric"

Harry nodded his head, shrugging his shoulders. "They didn't want us to be distracted, and we just learned the normal stuff. Everything was normal."

Tony raised an eyebrow at Harry's use of the word normal twice. For some reason it seemed that it was important to Harry for everyone to think that his school was normal. "Sounds boring," he chuckled.

Nodding his head, Harry gave his father a shy smile. "It was totally boring...and normal."

Tony looked to his teammates when Harry said normal for a third time. He had a feeling that Harry's school was anything but normal.

"Tell us about your friends, Harry. Aren't you going to miss them if you don't return in the fall?" Steve asked as he helped himself to more apple pie.

"I do have a couple good friends," Harry answered softly. "but they will be better off without me." Harry got up and started cleaning up the desert mess. He didn't want to talk anymore about as friends. He would miss Ron and Hermione, and Fred and George, but this was what he wanted. He didn't want to return to Hogwarts in the fall, he didn't want to become The-Boy-Who-Lived again, he just wanted to be a normal teenage boy.

Steve got up and took the plates from Harry. "We will do the clean up, you sit and relax."

"That's the captain giving a direct order," Bruce said getting up to help. "You were supposed to take it easy today. I don't call making an amazing Thanksgiving dinner and three delicious pies, taking it easy."

Harry reluctantly sat back down. It made him very uncomfortable watching others clean up his mess. He had been doing the cooking and cleaning for as far back as he could remember, and it wasn't right watching others do his job.

"I think I'm going to hit the pool after this." Steve chuckled. "If I want to keep enjoying Harry's cooking, I'm going to have to increase my exercising. Can't have Captain America getting fat lazy.

"You have a pool?," Harry gasped.

Clint snorted. "What doesn't Tony have? The workout floor not only has a gym, but a pool, hot tub and sauna."

"Do you like to swim, Harry?" Bruce asked. "You can't swim now with the cast on your arm, but it would help you build the strength back up in that arm after the cast comes off."

Harry frantically shook his head no. He was terrified of the water, even taking a bath made him uncomfortable. If if wasn't for Moody pushing him into the lake during the second task, he never would have been able to force himself to jump in.

Tony looked thoughtfully at his son. "Do you know how to swim?"

Harry jumped to his feet and walked to the refrigerator. Opening it up, he grabbed a hunk of turkey for Hedwig. "I think I will turn in early tonight. I'm feeling a little tired and I want to spend some time with Hedwig." Without waiting for response, Harry left the kitchen without looking at anyone. He didn't want to talk about swimming, or his fear of the water. He didn't want to have nightmares of his uncle Vernon holding his head under the water.

Client whistled. "That boy has some serious fear of water."

"But why?" Bruce asked thoughtfully.

***HP

"Why the hell is your brother standing smugly in my office, Thor?" Fury roared, making his glass windows rattle. He had hoped to never lay his one good eye on Loki ever again.

Thor grinned, affectionately smacking his brother on the shoulder. "My father, Odin, has banished my brother to Midgard as punishment for his crimes. He has limited use of his magic, placed a tracking band on him, and he must help the warrior Nick Fury on whatever missions he is needed on.

"He can help me by removing his psychotic ass from my planet," Fury growled.

Thor frowned at Fury. "But my brother wants to help, he wasn't in his right mind last he was here. He is sorry for what he did."

"Sorry doesn't bring back all the lives he took."

"That is true," Thor said sadly. "But my brother didn't mean to take the lives of innocence. He is here to help save lives now, besides the Allfather will not allow him to return to Asgard or leave Midgard until he feels he has paid his debt."

Fury glared at Loki who was smirking smugly next to Thor. He knew no matter how much he screamed and yelled, there would be no changing Odin's mind. "Fine, but if he stays, so do you. Thor, you will be responsible for your brother."

"Understood," Thor grinned.

Fury snarled at Loki. "You will also be living at Stark Tower where the Avengers can babysit you...that is if they don't kill you first. You will do what they say, go where they say, and you better not put one toe out of line."

Loki rolled his eyes. "The Avengers, my old friends. I dearly can't wait to get reacquainted with them."

"See, Furious Nick," Thor said, tossing a heavily muscled arm around Loki's shoulder. "Everything is going to be just fine."

"Get out of my office," Fury snarled, lips curled back like an animal.

Coulson was standing beside the directors desk watching as Thor and Loki left the office. "Was it wise to send Loki to Stark's with a heavily abused and powerful Harry Potter there?"

Fury shook his head. "No, but what other choice did I have?"

"Are you going to tell Stark about his son?"

Fury sighed, when he called his brother to find out about Harry Potter, Kingsley had told him everything that he knew. It seemed that the boy's relatives weren't the only one who abused the poor kid. Kingsley had went into great detail about Harry's life at Hogwarts and all the life threatening situations he had faced there. He explained how one minute they were hailing him the hero, and the next they wanted him thrown in Azkaban for being the next Dark Wizard. He was greatly distressed when Kingsley informed him that Lord Voldemort was back and how Harry was his main target. The boy was safer here with his father and the Avengers, then back in England.

"No, if the boy wants them to know that he is a wizard, then it's up to him to tell them. We will keep monitoring the situation, and only interfere if needed." Fury knew that it wasn't safe sending someone as manipulative as Loki to the same home as someone as vulnerable and powerful as Harry, but he didn't have any other choice. He couldn't let Loki wander his streets unsupervised.


	5. Chapter 5

I do not own Harry Potter or Avengers..

Here's the next update,,,,shew :) PLEASE LEAVE ME A REVIEW..

visit me on Facebook at Potter Obsessed, I will post updates, teasers, and ask for opinions..

***HP

Harry yawned into his cast as he absentmindedly flipped the bacon with his other hand. Despite going to bed early last night, he had maybe only gotten three hours of sleep. Every time he drifted off to sleep he would wake thirty minutes later from a nightmare. After a while he just gave up and started reading a book that Hermione had given him last Christmas. He didn't want to risk Tony hearing him screaming then asking him a million questions about his nightmares.

"Good morning, Harry," Steve said strolling into the kitchen and stopping behind him. "Harry, it was my morning to cook breakfast. You are by far the best cook, but you don't have to cook every meal for us."

Harry closed his eyes and gripped the spatula tight in his hand. He really, really hated when someone stood behind him. Steve was so close that he could feel his body heat on his back and his breath on his neck. He wanted to push Steve away, but the man was as big as a mountain. He felt so small and helpless next to the incredibly muscled soldier and he found his size greatly intimidating.

"I like cooking," Harry whispered, dropping his head and looking at his feet. He couldn't help but make himself submissive with the much larger man towering over him. He had learned early on if you did as you were told and submitted easily then the beatings and rapes might not be as severe.

When Steve noticed how scared Harry was and how his small body trembled, he quickly moved away so that the table was between the two of them. "Harry, I will never hurt you," he said sincerely. "I know you have no reason to trust me, but I swear on my shield that I will never physically, emotionally or sexually hurt you."

Harry swallowed the lump in his throat and without turning around, he nodded his head. He knew from watching the documentary on Captain America that his shield was very important to him. He desperately wanted to trust Steve...to trust everyone in the tower, but it was going to take time. He may have had friends at Hogwarts and a semi family with Sirius and a Remus, but he never truly trusted them. Ron had already proven on more than one occasion that he was jealous of him and could easily abandon him, and Sirius and Remus walked out on him when he needed them the most. The only two he had ever come close to trusting was Fred and George. They had known a part of his secret for a few years now and had never told anyone. They had even helped heal his injuries and owl some potions and food to him when he needed them over the summer.

"Is there anything I can do to help you with breakfast?"

Harry shook his head no. "I'm almost done, but thank you for asking," he said softly.

Steve took a seat at the table, his stomach grumbling in anticipation. Harry really was an amazing cook and breakfast was smelling delicious. "Just to warn you, there will be two more for meals." Steve really hated the idea of Loki being in the same house as Harry. Hell, he hated the idea of Loki even being on earth. He was floored when Thor came waltzing in last night with his psychotic brother in toe. As upset as he was, it was nothing compared to Clint. Clint yelled, cursed, and threatened Loki, and when the man just stood there smirking, Clint punched him in the face knocking the god on his ass. He then stormed to his room to pack refusing to stay in the same house as Loki, but changed his mind when he remembered about Harry. He couldn't leave a child as broken and vulnerable as Harry in the hands of someone like Loki.

"Alright, thanks for the warning." Harry went to the refrigerator and started gathering food. "I'm making omelettes, how would you like yours?" He really wanted to know more about the two new people that must have showed up some time during the night, but it really wasn't any of his business. He didn't want anyone to think that he was nosey as well as a freak. He would just have to wait and meet them for himself. He really wasn't happy that there would now be two more people that he would have to be cautious of, but there was nothing that he could do about it.

"Hmm, omelette," Steve groaned. "Can I please have mine with loads of cheese, some left over turkey, onions, peppers and salt?"

Harry smiled at Steve. "Sure, coming right up. I also have some bacon, sausage, blueberry muffins and toast."

"Harry, it's seven am, what time did you get up to get so much cooking done?"

Harry shrugged his shoulders. "I guess I'm an early riser."

Steve took a good look at the teen in front of him. He didn't notice it at first, but the boy looked exhausted. There were dark circles under his puffy eyes and his emerald eyes were blood shot. Harry was also shuffling as he expertly moved around the kitchen. "Did you sleep at all, Harry?"

Harry's hand froze as he was cracking the fourth egg in the bowl. He couldn't imagine eating four eggs for breakfast, but Steve was huge and had an incredible appetite on him. "Yeah, I slept," he answered weakly.

"That doesn't sound very convincing, Harry."

Harry added some milk to the eggs and started to briskly whisk them. "Some nights I sleep better than others, last night wasn't one of my better nights."

Steve didn't want to upset Harry so he dropped the subject. He did plan to talk to Tony about it though. Harry was still recovering from being seriously ill, and if he wasn't sleeping well, then he could get sick again.

Harry placed a plate in front of Steve that was piled high with bacon, sausage, toast, and an omelette that looked like it belonged in a food magazine. He then placed a bowl of fruit next to him and a plate of muffins.

"So, what do you plan on doing today?" Steve asked as he dug into his breakfast. Like everything else Harry had cooked for them so far, it was perfect.

Before Harry could answer, Clint came storming into the kitchen looking like he was ready to murder someone. Harry immediately backed away from the table and as far away from Clint as he could. Whenever his uncle was in one of his moods like Clint's, he always took it out on him. All these men were trained fighters with skills that were unmatched, and they spent hours everyday working out their bodies, the last thing he wanted was for them to turn on him. Uncle Vernon was morbidly obese and normally tired after fifteen minutes, these men though could probably go at him for hours before becoming winded.

Steve kicked Clint hard under the table then jerked his fork in Harry's direction. The poor kid was looking at Clint like he was a monster that was about to devour him.

At seeing the fear in Harry's eyes, Clint instantly relaxed his face and gave him a small smile. He didn't mean to frighten the boy, he was just pissed that Loki was going to be living with them for the foreseeable future. He would never admit it, but Loki scared him. Guns, knives, bows and hand to hand combat he could handle, magic on the other hand was a different story. How the hell was he supposed to fight magic with his bow? The man was able to take control of his mind once before, and the thought of him doing it again terrified him.

"Good morning, Harry," Clint said giving the boy a reassuring smile. Despite being furious over Loki being at the tower, he would never take his anger out on a child. The last thing he wanted was Harry being scared of him.

Harry lowered his eyes to the table and refused to look up at Clint. "Good morning, sir. Would you like an omelette?"

Clint inwardly cursed, Harry hadn't called him sir since he first got there. He must have really frightened the boy to cause him to revert to calling him that. "Harry, I'm not upset with you. Please, call me Clint, not sir. I'm just being a grump this morning but it's not your fault and I won't take it out on you." Clint looked to Steve's plate to see what he was eating. "I will take whatever the captain is eating. Anything that has him moaning like that must be delicious."

Harry nodded his head, quickly getting to work on Clint's breakfast. Something had the archer beyond pissed and he didn't want to make it worse. Right now he was so scared that he just wanted to curl in on himself and hide. He saw the video of the alien invasion and he saw first hand how skilled Clint was. He didn't want to feel those hands on him in anger.

Clint sadly watched how Harry's hands were shaking as he whipped him up an omelette. He felt like an ass for scaring the boy so much. He should have known better than to storm into the kitchen like that with Harry in it. He knew that Harry watched every movement that they made and read their every emotion. He watched how his eyes would linger on their hands, especially Steve's much large ones. It made him sick to know that his presence was scaring him so much.

Harry placed the plate in front of Clint, never lifting his eyes from it. As fast as he could, he retreated back to the stove and out of reach of Clint's lethal hands.

Clint looked at his breakfast no longer having much of an appetite. He had come to care a great deal for Harry over the past week, and now thanks to Loki, he was going to have to start at the beginning with gaining the boy's trust. "Thank you, Harry, this looks amazing."

"You're welcome," Harry answered softly.

Bruce and Tony were next to arrive immediately picking up on the quiet and tension in the room.

Harry gave Tony and Bruce a relieved smile. He felt much safer with his father and Bruce in the kitchen. He wanted to believe that Clint would never hurt him, but right now he was running on instinct. He had lived for too many years with having to be scared and wary of people, especially men when angered. He just wanted to get this morning over with so he could hide back in his room and relax. His stomach was already cramping from his fear and anxiety and he didn't want to get sick in front of everyone.

"My little beauties," Tony coo'd, sitting down and pulling the entire plate of blueberry muffins to his chest. "Oh you naughty little things, how dare you stay away from me for so long. Every night I have dreamt of your beauty and smell, I can't wait to taste your deliciousness." Tony picked up a muffin and took a big bite of it, grinning when he heard his son giggle. He didn't know why Harry looked terrified when he walked into the kitchen, but he was happy that he was able to put a smile back on his face.

"Harry, why are you cooking again?" Bruce gently scolded. "You are not responsible for cooking every meal."

The smile slowly slipped from Harry's face. He couldn't tell them that he had to cook, that he had to feel useful. He was terrified if they thought he was lazy that they would ship him back. Here wasn't like living at the Dursley's where he always had something to do and a yard to slave in. The only useful thing he could find to do was cook, and he had to do it.

"I...I'm making omelettes, what would you like on yours?"

Bruce sighed, he knew that it wasn't Harry's fault that he was so obsessed with cooking for them. "Do we have any ham?"

Harry went to the fridge and pulled out a package of pre-sliced ham. "Is this alright?"

"That's perfect, Harry." Bruce answered giving Harry a smile. "I will just have a ham and cheese omelette."

Tony looked from the the blueberry muffins to the omelettes his teammates were eating, then back to the muffins again. "Can I have a blueberry muffin inside my omelette?"

Harry scrunched his face up in disgust. "I don't think that combination would taste very good."

Tony sighed dramatically. "Fine, just make mine a cheese then." Tony looked down at the plate of blueberry muffins. "Don't worry my sweeties, daddy won't forget about you."

Harry turned back to the stove giggling. His father really loved blueberries and blueberry muffins. He couldn't get over how free and fun loving his father was, he wished that he could be more like him.

Harry had just handed Tony and Bruce their plates when the door burst open and two more men walked in.

"My friends, what is that delicious smell?" Thor boomed.

Despite the blond man being incredibly loud, huge and intimidating, it was the dark haired man that Harry couldn't take his eyes off of. The magic rolling off of him was unlike anything he had ever felt before. He thought Hogwarts magic was overwhelming the first time he stepped foot through her doors, but it was nothing compared to the magic swirling around this man.

Immediately Loki's eyes fell on the small raven haired child, the source of the magic that he had been picking up on since he arrived at the tower last evening. He knew that Midgard held some magic users, but never had he come across one as powerful as the boy in front of him. If trained properly, this small timid child could be as powerful as him someday.

"Boy, I do not know thee." Thor said, walking towards the boy, only to stop when Bruce stood up and blocked his path.

Harry backed himself into the corner now looking fearfully at the blond giant. Being called boy brought forth a lot of painful memories. Boy is what his uncle called him, and good boy or my sweet boy is what the men called him that raped him. He hated the word boy with a passion and the way it made him feel dirty and used.

Loki's eyes widened when the child's magic spiked. How could such a small Midgardian child have so much magic? "Brother, I believe that you are scaring the bo...child." He didn't miss how the child had flinched at the word boy.

Tony got up and placed himself in front of his son, blocking Loki's view of him. He didn't like the way the God of Mischief was looking at him. "Thor, this is my son Harry."

"Son!" Thor exclaimed. "I did not know that you had a son."

"Neither did I up until a week ago," Tony answered, glaring at Loki. Why was the god so interested in his son?

"I didn't know you had it in you, Man of Iron," Loki smirked. "How could a mere mortal father a child as..."

Harry quickly knocked the frying pan onto the floor making it clatter loudly and turn all heads towards him. "Sorry about that," he murmured, looking frantically to the man that he now knew was the god Loki. He didn't understand what the man was doing here after trying to destroy earth, but he had no doubts that the god knew exactly what he was. If he could feel Loki's magic, then he was positive that the god could feel his. He didn't want anyone to know that he was a wizard, he had planned to leave that life behind him. He could see the hate that the Avengers held for Loki, and it would kill him if they looked at him the same way.

"C-Can I make you two some breakfast?" Harry asked the two gods.

"A child should not be working in the kitchen," Thor scowled. "A boy such as yourself should be on the field learning how to wield a sword and ride a stallion."

Once again Loki didn't miss how the child flinched at the word boy or how his magic spiked from it. There was something wrong with the boy, he could sense it. He also didn't miss how the child drew the attention to himself and away from him. The boy was keeping many secrets, and for now he would play his game.

"This is Midgard, brother," Loki smirked, taking a seat next the scowling archer. He knew how much the man despised him and wanted to kill him. "Their ways are far different from ours." Loki grinned at Clint. "I will have whatever my good friend here had to break his fast."

"I am not your friend, you bastard," Clint snarled.

Bruce placed his hand on Clint's tense shoulder. "Maybe you should leave early today." Bruce pointed to where Harry stood trembling by the stove.

Clint stood up, never taking his eyes off of Loki. His fingers were itching to grab his bow and plant an arrow between the arrogant god's eyes. "Thank you for breakfast, Harry. As always, it was wonderful."

"I bet it was truly...magical." Loki said, giving the boy a mischievous smile.

Paling, Harry turned away from the god's knowing gaze and got to work making two more omelettes.

Thor looked between his brother and the boy, he could sense a strange tension between the two. "Stark, tell me about your boy."

Harry tensed, dropping the egg that he had been holding. "I'm sorry," he cried, quickly dropping to his knees so he could clean up the mess.

Before Harry could reach out with the towel, Loki had cleaned the mess with a simple wave of his hand and a wink to the boy. "Accidents happen," he grinned. "Nothing a little magic couldn't handle. Don't you agree, young Harry?"

Ignoring the god's goading, Harry turned back to the stove and continued cooking.

Tony glared at the god. "I don't know what you're planning, but you leave my son the hell alone. You thought we were hard on you last time, think of it as a walk in the park compared to what we will do you to you if you so much as even think about doing anything to him."

Loki held up his hands grinning. "I'm a good god now, remember? I came to help you lowly Midgardians with your problems."

"The only problem I have," Tony snarled. "Is you. I don't want you in my tower or near my son. You stay the hell away from him, understood?"

"My brother would never harm a child...not now that he is in complete control of himself," Thor quickly added when he saw all the skeptical looks sent his way. "Loki adores children."

"Then he can have his own," Tony snapped. "He stays away from mine or else he is out of here, I don't give a fuck what Fury says. This is my tower and if he can't behave, then he's out."

Harry shyly approached the table with two plates in his hand. He placed the first one in front of Thor, and after a quick glance at the trickster god, he placed a plate in front of him. He only made eye contact with the god for a split second before lowering his eyes submissively. Harry quickly returned to the stove and started cleaning up the mess.

"Harry, how many times do we have to remind you that we will clean up the mess?" Steve said, getting to his feet and approaching the shy boy.

"No, it's alright, you have things to do today."

"Yes I do," Steve agreed, "and one of them is cleaning up the breakfast mess. Now, have you eaten this morning?"

"I'm not very hungry this morning," Harry answered, shrugging his shoulders. It was true, he had completely lost his appetite when Loki walked into the kitchen. He just knew that the God of Mischief was going to cause trouble for him. He had to find a way to convince the god to not tell everyone what he was. Tony couldn't find out that he was a wizard, he just couldn't.

"Harry, take a seat," Bruce ordered. "You know I can't let you go without eating, not after almost dying a week ago from blood poisoning. You are dangerously underweight and if you don't start eating better, then you are going to force me to use medical means of filling you with nutrients."

Harry reluctantly took a seat which unfortunately was across from Loki. He kept his head down and nervously fiddled with his fingers. The last thing he wanted to do was look up and see eyes which so much resembled his own staring back at him.

Bruce walked to the refrigerator and pulled out some mayonnaise. After toasting two pieces of bread, he lathered the mayonnaise on and piled it with bacon. "Since you're not that hungry, I made you a bacon sandwich, please try to eat it all."

"Listen to mother," Tony chuckled. "It's not good for any of us if we make him mad."

"Ah, so you are his mother?" Thor asked Bruce. "I was wondering where the boy's mother was."

"Stop calling me that!" Harry snapped at the God of Thunder.

Everyone stopped what they were doing and stared at Harry, shocked that he had raised his voice to someone.

"Oh god, I'm sorry," Harry paled. He didn't mean to say that out loud. He was just tired of hearing that word and he wanted it to stop. "Please don't punish me." Harry finally looked up and took a good look at Thor. Thor was even bigger than Steve and his hands were twice the size of Steve's. Thor also kept a hammer at his side at all times and the hammer was bigger than his head. There was no way that he could survive a single blow from this man...this god.

"No one will be punishing you, child," Loki said gently. He could tell that someone had hurt this boy greatly, he could see it in his eyes and feel it in his magic. The thought that some mortal had hurt someone as powerful as this child greatly pissed him off. "You will have to forgive my brother, he did not realize that the use of that word was upsetting you so much. Thor may be a good guy, but he is a bit thick headed."

"Yes, I apologize," Thor said sincerely. "Had I known that I was offending you, I would have stopped immediately."

Harry relaxed at the sincerity in the God of Thunder's eyes. He knew that Thor wasn't doing it on purpose and he honestly didn't mean to snap at him. "I'm sorry, I shouldn't have been so rude."

Tony cleared his throat, he was a bit surprised at how Loki had handled his son and the situation. "Point Break, you do realize that men can't get pregnant right?"

Thor cocked his head to the side. "They can't?" he asked curiously. Thor turned to Loki. "Men from Midgard can't get pregnant?"

Loki winked at Harry who was choking on his sandwich. "There are a rare few men here on Midgard who can carry a child, but the majority can not."

"Men can not get pregnant," Tony snorted. "Reindeer Games, you're even crazier than I thought."

Loki shrugged his shoulders. "Don't believe me then, but I know for a fact that such men do exist." Loki looked to Harry. "Someday, Man of Iron, you are going to be in for a big surprise." Loki could tell that Harry's mother was a man, he could read it in his magic. He could also tell that Harry himself was a carrier. Not all male Midgardian magic users were carriers, only about twenty percent born carried the ability.

Harry quickly got to his feet pushing his half eaten sandwich away. "Is it alright if I go to my room?" he asked Tony.

"I don't blame you for wanting to escape," Tony said, giving Loki an exasperated look. "I will be around today if you need me. Just ask Jarvis and he will direct you to my shop."

"Thank you," Harry said, making his way to the door as fast as he could.

"Harry," Loki called. "This food was truly magical. I thank you for it."

Harry stumbled in his retreat but didn't turn back to Loki. He was desperate to get to his room where he could release some of his tension.

***HP

Fred and George were secretly plotting in their room at Grimmauld Place. It had now been over a week since school had let out and they had yet to hear from Harry. They knew that Sirius and Remus were also worried about Harry, but they wouldn't go against Dumbledore. Dumbledore said that Harry was fine and would owl them when he was fully recovered from the third task. They knew better though, they knew that something was wrong with their friend and honorary little brother.

"I say we floo to the Leaky Cauldron then take the Knight Bus to Harry's relatives house." George suggested.

Fred nodded his head in agreement. "There is something not right going on, Harry has never went this long without contacting us. Errol also returned with our letters unopened. I'm worried about him. "

"Me too, brother. We just needed a diversion so we can get to the floo without being seen." George added.

"It's a bloody shame that we don't have a trunk full of pranks," Fred said, smirking at his twin.

"Damn bloody shame it is," George said shaking his head.

Laughing, both boys jumped off the bed and fell on the floor next to a beat up old trunk.

***HP

"Something is wrong, I can feel it," Sirius said as he paced the length of the kitchen. "Harry promised to send me an owl the second he made it safely to his aunt's house."

"Sirius, like I told you before, Harry is fine. Arabella has been watching over him since I first dropped him off and she never reported a problem." He wasn't being completely honest with Sirius. Arabella had reported on countless occasions that she thought that Harry was being abused, but he still felt that Harry was safer there protected behind the blood wards. He couldn't imagine that Lily's sister would truly hurt her nephew, it was probably nothing more than a few smacks and being sent to bed with no dinner.

"Albus, he promised me that he would send an owl and Harry would never break a promise." Sirius raged.

"Sirius, that's enough," Dumbledore snapped, raising his voice for the first time. "Harry is fine, and right now we have more important matters to discuss. Harry is safe at his aunt and uncle's and I don't want to hear another word about it."

Sirius took a deep breath to retaliate but was distracted when a loud bang came from upstairs, then screaming. Racing out of the kitchen and up the steps, Sirius and Dumbledore never noticed the twins standing near the fireplace.

"Do you think dear Ronniekins will ever forgive us for filling his trunk up with spiders?" Fred asked, grinning from ear to ear.

George shook his head smirking. "Doubt it, he still hasn't forgiven us for turning his bear into a spider when he was five."

Fred chuckled, fondly remembering that day. "Do you think mother will forgive us for blowing up the bathtub?"

"Never, but I'm sure Sirius with thank us, he hates this place." George grabbed his twins hand and stepped into the fireplace.

***HP

"Did this neighborhood look this boring last time we were here?" George asked his twin.

Fred looked up and down the street, grimacing because every house was identicle. He guessed after living in a house as unique as the Burrow, most everything else would look boring. "It was dark last time we were here and we were flying in dad's car. This neighborhood is pretty pathetic. I don't understand why anyone would want to live in the same house as their neighbor."

George pointed at one particular house. "That's it, Number 4, Privet Drive."

"Are you positive?" Fred asked skeptically. "The little sign above the door says The Anderson's."

George shrugged his shoulders. "Well, there's one way to find out my most handsome brother." Fixing his shirt, he briskly walked up the drive and rang the doorbell."

Fred and George were a bit taken aback when a little red headed girl around the age of six answered the door. They knew for a fact that Harry only had one cousin and he was a fat, lard ass of a boy.

"Good afternoon fellow ginger child." George said sweeping into a deep bow. "Would a Harry Potter happen to live here?"

"He's about yeah high," Fred added holding his hand up to his belly. "Has horribly messy black hair, god awful glasses and stunning emerald eyes."

The little girl giggled at the two boys. "You two have the same fwaces."

The twins looked at each other and snorted. "I'm way more handsomer than he is," they both said at the same time, pointing at each other.

The little girl giggled harder. "You two are funny."

"Annabel, who's at the door?" A woman called from farther in the house.

"I dunno," the little girl hollered back. "They funny and have the same fwaces."

A blond woman in her early thirties took the little girls hand and pulled her behind her. "Hello, may I help you?"

Both Fred and George bowed to the lady. "Hello mother to the fellow little ginger child. We were wondering if a Harry Potter resided here?" George asked.

"He has messy haiw and gwasses, mummy," the little girl said, peeking around her mother's legs.

"No, I'm sorry, you must have the wrong address," the woman answered.

"What about the Dursley's, do they live here?" Fred asked, a sinking feeling settling in the pit of his stomach. He knew that this was the correct house.

"Oh, that name I do recognize," the lady said grimacing. "We bought this house from those horrible people a month ago. I don't remember a Harry though. The only child I saw was a rotund, whiny boy by the name of Dudley."

George paled. "Would you happen to know where they moved to?" he asked, no trace of a smile on his face.

The lady thought for a minute. "I'm not sure, but I heard them saying something about America."

Fred reached out and grabbed George for support. "America, are you sure?"

The lady nodded her head. "Yeah, I'm pretty sure I heard the man boasting to my husband that he got a promotion and was transferring to America."

Fred and George bowed again. "Thank you very much for your time lovely lady, and pretty little ginger princess." They both said at the same time.

The little girl squealed. "Mummy, the funny fwaces called me a pwincess."

The lady smiled down at her daughter. "No problem, I hope you can find your friend."

"Us too," George said sadly.

Slowly the twins walked down the road both thinking over what they just found out. "Brother, we have to tell the Order. Merlin only knows where those people took Harry." Fred whispered.

"Or what they have done to him," George said, sadly nodding his head. "That explains why Errol couldn't deliver our letters, he couldn't find Harry."

***HP

Harry blindly stumbled into the bathroom. Falling to his knees, he vomited into the toilet. Why did this have to happen now? Everything was going so well, and then he had to show up. Loki knew what he was, Loki knew that he was a wizard. He heard all about Loki and he knew that the man wouldn't keep his secret. He knew that Loki was a trickster and he would use this knowledge against him to his advantage.

Flushing the toilet, Harry got up and walked to the sink. Digging through his bag that he had sitting there, he pulled out a very small, very sharp knife. Taking the knife in his hand with the cast, he drug the blade down his opposite arm. Steadily taking deep breaths, he sunk to the floor and drug the knife down his arm for a second time. He watched transfixed as his blood bubbled and spilled down his arm and onto the expensive marble floor.

Smiling, Harry cut his arm for a third time. It wasn't often that he cut himself, at least he didn't think so, but when things became overwhelming, he just had to do it. He couldn't understand it, but the cutting made him feel better. He could think better and clearer when watching his scarlet blood flow from his wounds.

Harry couldn't remember how old he was when he first started cutting, but if he had to guess, he would say he was around around eight. He did vividly remember the first time he did it though, it was the first time he was ever given to Mr. Mason. Uncle Vernon was trying to seal a deal with Mr. Mason and he had invited him to the house for drinks while aunt Petunia and Dudley went out to the movies.

Uncle Vernon wasn't positive that Mr. Mason liked young boys, but Mr. Grunning's had said that he did. His uncle Vernon had dressed him in a pair of tight underwear and a long t-shirt and had him lay on the couch to watch cartoons. He was never allowed on the couch or permitted to watch tv, but uncle Vernon had did it to get Mr. Mason's attention. The second Mr. Mason walked through the door, his eyes hungrily fell on him. With a knowing grin, uncle Vernon said a few words to Mr. Mason, then left the two of them alone in the house for a few hours.

Harry didn't want to think about what happened after uncle Vernon left, but he could still remember the pain and the blood. When his uncle had returned home and found him broken and naked on the floor, he had carelessly picked him up and carried him to the bathroom. Filling the tub full with nothing but cold water, his uncle literally dropped him in the tub and ordered him to clean up his mess. Without looking back, his uncle stormed from the bathroom, slamming the door behind him.

Crying and in pain, Harry had spotted a razor on the tub. Wanting to end his pain, he picked it up and sliced his arm. The wound wasn't deep enough to kill him unfortunately, but it did strangely make him feel better. With him causing the pain, it helped him deal with the pain that Mr. Mason had inflicted on him easier. After that, cutting became somewhat routine for him.

After that Harry had always worn long sleeved shirts to cover his scars, even in the heat of the summer. Then, when searching the library for information on Nicolas Flamel, he stumbled across a book that talked about glamours. It took him a while to get the wand movements correct, but by second year he was finally able to hide his scars magically and wear t-shirts once again. He could now drop and reapply the glamours on his arms with just a thought. He had been working on building his glamours to cover his back, but never got the chance to practice after his name came out of the a Goblet of Fire. It didn't matter now, everyone here had seen his scars and put two and two together. He was relieved that his father had yet to start interrogating him, but he knew that it was coming.

Harry remained on the bathroom floor until his arms stopped bleeding and the blood dried. Sighing, he got up and cleaned up his mess. Before leaving his bathroom, he reapplied the glamours to his arm, sad to see his scars disappear.

***HP

Harry followed Jarvis' directions, stopping right outside his father's glass workshop doors. Tony was bent over his work bench with some kind of weird contraception on his head, working hard at something. Not wanting to interrupt him, he turned to go back up the steps. He had only made it up three steps when he heard something bang on the glass doors. Turning around, he grinned when he saw his father waving him in.

"Hey, Little Chef, I'm glad you came to visit," Tony said, opening the door and escorting his son in.

"Whoa," Harry gasped, looking around the room and spotting multiple Iron Man suits lining the back wall. "Do you honestly fly in those?"

"Sure do," Tony said proudly. "Go ahead and check them out, you can touch them."

Harry walked up to the red and gold suite, it's colors reminding him of Gryffindor colors. Reaching out, he ran his hand over the cool metal. "I can't believe these heavy things actually fly."

Tony snickered. "They do fly, but when they crash, they come down hard."

Harry spun around to face Tony. "You have crashed one before?"

"Multiple times, kiddo, multiple times."

"Didn't it hurt?" Harry asked in awe.

Tony chuckled. "The metal protects my body very well, but yes, sometimes it does hurt like a bitch. Luckily, I have yet to break any bones," he added, tapping on his son's cast. "Have you ever built anything before, Harry."

"Does a picket fence and a porch swing count?" Harry asked, not looking at Tony.

"If you built it with your hands, then yes it counts."

Harry looked up at Tony smirking. "The porch swing only lasted a day before it collapsed under the weight of my cousin." Harry tried not to laugh, but he couldn't stop it. It had been well worth the beating he got for laughing at Dudley when he fell on his fat ass and couldn't get back up. His aunt had to come out and roll Dudley to the porch step in order for him to get to his feet.

"Yes well, I don't think even I could build something that could hold that boy's weight." Tony chuckled. "Would you like to help me?" Tony pointed at what he had been working on for the past two hours.

Harry took two steps away from the table. "I better not, I will only ruin whatever you have been working on." Harry wasn't sure what Tony was working on, but it looked like some kind of arm piece to the Iron Man suit and very important.

Tony waved his hand towards his work bench. "There's nothing to ruin yet. I'm trying to make some upgrades to the suit, you can never have too much firepower."

"Can I just watch?" Harry hoped that his father wouldn't be upset that he didn't know what he was talking about or how to do the things that he could do.

"Sure, kiddo," Tony said, affectionately ruffling Harry's hair.

Harry tensed at the action, but at the same time warmth spread throughout his body. He had seen fathers do similar things to their children when he was younger and he had always wanted that. He had always wanted to be pat on the back and told that he did a good job, or read a bedtime story before falling asleep. Instead he got whipped, starved and raped.

"Tell me, Little Chef, why don't you want to return to your school?" Tony asked, turning back to his table and picking up a screwdriver. "Not that I want you to return that is. I just got you, I'm not ready to lose you so soon."

Harry sat down in the seat next to his father's work table and drew his knees up to his chin. "It's hard to explain, but it wasn't what I thought it would be. When I first heard about it I was excited to go, it was a new place away from the Dursley's, and my parents had also gone there. I didn't know much about them, my aunt wouldn't allow me to ask questions. Heck, I didn't even know their names until the man who showed up from the school told me about them. When I got there though, everyone expected me to be something that I wasn't, and my every move was scrutinized. I wasn't allowed to just be myself there."

"What do they expect from you at your school?" Tony asked curiously.

Harry wrapped his arms around his knees. "My parents were like these famous war heroes and everyone expects me to be like them. I don't want to be like them though, I don't want to be responsible for everyone else...I just want to be Harry."

"That's a lot of pressure to put on someone so young. I know what it's like to have to live up to everyones expectations." Tony handed Harry a wrench. "I could use an extra pair of hands, if you don't mind?"

Harry took the wrench and stood next to his father. He honestly didn't know anything about building and tools. He did all the cooking and cleaning, but after the bench incident, his uncle never asked him to build anything again.

Giving his son a reassuring smile, Tony directed Harry to what he needed him to do. "My father was a very cold and calculating man who never had time to spare for his son. I did everything I could to gain his attention and respect, but he was too busy searching for Captain America to ever notice my achievements."

"Did he e-ever h-hit you?" Harry asked, voice barely above a whisper.

"No, Harry," Tony said looking his son in the eye. "He would have had to be around me in order to hit me, and he was never around. Then my parents died when I was fourteen, so I have been alone for a while now." Tony reached out and took his son's hand. "When did the abuse start, son?"

Harry gave a slight gasp at being called son. Looking down at their joined hands, he noticed how much larger and stronger his father's hands were. These hands could either hurt him like uncle Vernon's, or protect him. Could he trust his father with the truth about his childhood? Tony had been working hard the past week to save kids just like himself, could he save him too?

Harry closed his eyes trying to get the courage to speak...to speak about things that had been forbidden for over thirteen years.

Tony patiently waited for his son to speak, he could see the battle that was raging inside of him. He knew that Harry had been conditioned and threatened to never speak about what happened in that house of horrors, but he would never heal if he kept it bottled inside.

"I can never remember a time where they weren't hurting or starving me," Harry finally said, voice weak and broken. "They hated me and they made sure everyday that I knew it. I have a pretty good memory, and I remember screaming and crying, scared of the dark cupboard and wanting my parents."

"Cupboard?" Tony asked with dread.

Harry jerkily nodded his head, wiping an escaped tear from his cheek. "Until I was eleven, my bedroom was the cupboard under the stairs. I didn't have a bed or anything because the space was too small, just some old dirty blankets." Harry took a big shaky breath. "Until I started school, they kept me locked in my cupboard unless I was doing chores."

"They locked you in?" Tony asked, heart feeling like it had been pierced with a knife. As his son was talking about his childhood, he could vividly imagine every detail.

Harry nodded his head, still staring at their joined hands. He did notice that he was now squeezing his father's hand rather tightly. "Sometimes for days with only a bucket to relieve myself in," he explained, shame clear on his face. "If I was lucky, uncle Vernon would leave the vent open so I could get some fresh air."

"Where you lucky often?" Tony asked, trying his damnedest to hide the anger in his voice.

Harry shook his head no. "Eventually he just boarded up the vent. He said my stench was starting to stink up the house."

Tony pinched the bridge of his nose, and for the first time that he could ever remember, he felt like crying. He didn't even cry when his parents died or when he himself was dying from palladium poisoning. Hearing how is son...his flesh and blood had been treated, broke something inside of him that he didn't even realize that he had.

Harry couldn't believe that he was actually telling his father about his childhood. Uncle Vernon would kill him if he ever found out that he told. In a way it felt good though, for the first time ever he was able to tell someone about it. He would hopefully finally have someone that could help him...be there for him.

Harry took a deep breath, ready to continue. "For as far back as I can remember I was forced to do all the chores. First it was cleaning up after Dudley and putting his toys away, then it was doing all the cooking, cleaning and gardening."

"You had to clean up after your cousin? Did he ever have to do any chores of his own?"

Harry shook his head no. "I actually didn't mind putting his toys away, it was the only time that I got to touch and play with toys?"

"Are you telling me that you never had any toys? Didn't you get any for your birthday or Christmas?"

Harry chuckled darkly. "No, freaks like me aren't allowed toys or clothes. Freak should be thankful that his relatives were kind enough to take his ungrateful little ass in and give him a roof over his head and food in his belly. Freak needs to learn his place, and his place isn't with a normal family. Freak is not to be seen or heard, and he is never to sit on any of the chairs or couches and contaminate them. Freak is ugly and even his own parents killed themselves to get away from him. Freak will never find anyone to love him, he's..."

Tony had to give a Harry a hard shake to break him out of whatever trance he was in. Harry's eyes had gone dead as he started reciting what obviously had been drilled into him since he was a baby.

Harry blinked rapidly as his father's workshop started to come back into focus. Pulling his hand out of his father's, Harry wrapped his arms around himself and sank to the floor.

Tony followed him down to the floor, reaching out to grab his shoulders. "Harry, you are not a freak or any of those horrible things that your relatives called you."

Tears finally started to fall unchecked down Harry's face. "No, they were right, I am a freak. Even at my school I was a freak compared to everyone else. My parents were killed because of me, I deserved everything my relatives did to me."

"No, Harry," Tony said sternly. "You did not deserve any of that. You were just a baby when your parents died, none of it was your fault."

"But it was. The man who killed my parents was after me, but they stood up to him to protect me. If I hadn't been born, then they would still be alive today. Everything is my fault, even Cedric's death was my fault. I told Cedric to take the cup with me, I didn't know that it was a trap. If I would have just taken the cup myself, then Cedric would still be alive. His parents wouldn't be grieving the death of their only child. Don't you see, I'm a curse. If you were smart, you would send me back to my aunt and uncle's now before I caused your death too."

Tony didn't know what his son was rambling on about, but he grabbed him and pulled him tight to his chest. He was confused, the reports that his relatives had left behind had said that Harry's parents had died in a car crash. They had stated that both parents were unemployed and that his father had been driving drunk when he lost control of the car. Also, nothing in the reports had mentioned that James and Lily were war heroes. He now had so many more questions, like who the hell was Cedric?

Harry at first fought Tony's embrace, but now he was clinging to him, crying harder than what he had cried in a long time. He had never been held like this, never felt this safe before.

"Harry, I want you to listen to me, and listen to me good," Tony said seriously. "I will never send you back to those horrid people, or anywhere else for that matter. Pretty soon, they will be rotting in prison for the rest of their lives. As for bringing me bad luck and death, Harry, have you seen the life that I live? If anything, I should be worried about what trouble being my son will bring you. Incase you missed the memo, kid, the worlds most powerful hero's live here, not to mention the God of Thunder. This tower is also heavily secured, you're safe here, kiddo."

"Promise me that you won't let them force me back. They will come for me, I know they will. They will make me fight him and I don't want to. I'm not strong enough to fight him."

Tony had no clue what his son was talking about. Who was coming? Who did his son have to fight? Hardly anything he had said so far had made sense. He was more confused now than before this conversation started.

Tony took Harry's face into his hands and made him look at him. "No one, and I mean no one, is going to take you away from here. Harry, I don't know what's going on, but everyone in this tower is behind you one hundred percent. I would love to see someone try to take you away from me."

Harry knew that Tony meant every word he said, but there was no way he could defend himself against the wizarding world. He knew that it was just a matter of time before Dumbledore tracked him down and made him return to Hogwarts. They needed him to fight Voldemort, and now that he was back, they weren't going to let him play house with his father and the rest of the Avengers.

Harry scrubbed at his eyes trying to compose himself. He couldn't believe how much he let slip in front of Tony. Tony wasn't supposed to know about how his parents truly died or anything else that led back to the wizarding world. Hopefully his father would forget everything that he said, he absolutely could not find out that he was a wizard.

"I'm sorry about that," Harry unsteadily got to his feet.

Tony grabbed Harry's hand and tuned him back towards him. "Don't you dare apologize for that. I am your father and I want to help you. This isn't done, there is still a lot to work through." Tony knew that Harry was done talking for now, but he was surprised how much he had gotten out of him already. He would take this at Harry's pace, even if he went weeks without talking.

Harry gave Tony a small smile. "Thank you for that," he said pointing between the two of them. "I never had..." Harry closed his eyes, sighing. He didn't know how to say that he never had anyone hold and comfort him the way that his father just did.

Tony playfully shoved his son. "I'm here for you, Little Chef," he grinned. "You want to help me finish this up?" he asked, pointing to his work table.

Harry chuckled. "How about I go make us some lunch? Do you like turkey sandwiches?"

"Is mother's favorite color green?" Tony smirked. "Of course I like turkey sandwiches. Give me thirty minutes and I will meet you in the kitchen."

Harry shook his head, chuckling. "Thanks again."

***HP

"A show of hands of who in this tower has magic?"

Harry spun around and came face to face with a smirking Loki who was raising his hand high in the air. He didn't know how Loki managed to creep up on him like that, but he about gave him a heart attack.

"Come now, we mustn't be shy." Loki purred. "Raise your hand proudly if you have magic running through your veins."

Harry stepped away from Loki, not liking the god in his personal space. He hated how everyone in the tower absolutely towered hover him. "I don't know what you're talking about." he said, looking nervously at the door. Tony would be coming up for lunch any minute and he didn't want him to overhear what Loki was saying.

"Is that so, Little Mage? I can feel and taste the magic pouring of you in waves. You are exceptionally powerful for a Midgardian magic user. If I didn't know any better, I would swear that you were related to me. Not only does our magic feel the same, but you also resemble a younger me."

Harry stepped away from Loki, putting the table between the two of them. "Please," he whispered. "You can't tell anyone here about me being a wizard. If my father knew that I was a freak, he would send me back to my uncle."

"What did you just call yourself?" Loki growled, green eyes sparkling dangerously.

Harry's heart was pounding in his chest. He could feel Loki's magic swirling angrily in the air and it was starting to scare him. "Please, you don't understand. For the first time ever, I have a chance at having a real family. If they find out that I have magic, they will kick me out and I will be all alone again. I can't go back to what it was like before, I would rather die then get hurt like that again."

"You're scared of your magic," Loki said in disbelief.

"Yes I'm scared of my magic, and I hate it," Harry hissed. "It has brought me nothing but pain and suffering."

"But you could be great," Loki said, slowly advancing on Harry. "You could rule this pathetic planet and have them all bowing at your feet."

Harry shook his head, eyes filling with tears. "I don't want to be great or rule the world. I just want to be a normal boy and have a family, someone who will care about me and protect me."

Loki looked at Harry like he was some strange creature that needed studying. "You would sacrifice all that power for a family?"

"Yes," Harry said without having to think about it. "All I have ever wanted was a family. I have never had anyone to love or care for me, just an abusive uncle who used me for his own sick pleasure and gain." Harry slapped his hand over his mouth, he couldn't believe that he had just said that.

Loki's eyes darkened, anger like he hadn't felt in a long time burned through his veins. "Are you telling me that your uncle beat and raped you because of your magic?"

Harry felt like his chest was being squeezed in a vice. Loki's magic was furious, and it was quickly seeping out into the kitchen making it difficult for him to breath. Unable to say anything, Harry dropped his head in shame.

Seeing that he was hurting the child, Loki pulled his magic back, wrapping it around himself. "How old were you when the mortal took your innocence?"

Harry couldn't stop the tears from falling. Despite Loki gaining control of his magic, it still felt like someone was sitting on his chest. Against his will he thought back to the day when his uncle took him for the first time. He had been folding clothes in the living room when he heard his aunt screaming at his uncle from upstairs. A minute later she had come storming down the stairs with her purse and went straight out the door, slamming it behind her. Not thinking anything of it, he returned to his folding until he felt two large hands pick him up and slam him down hard onto the arm of the couch. By the time he caught his breath, his uncle had already stripped him down and had slammed brutally inside of him.

Loki stumbled forward grabbing the table for support. He was positive that the child didn't realize what he was doing when he opened his magic up and thrust the memory at him. The image was so powerful that he felt like he himself was the child that was getting violated. The boy couldn't have been more than five or six years old when the incident occurred. He had tried to bring up a shield to block himself from the horrific image, but because some of his magic was bound and the child was so powerful, he was helpless against the assault. He had to watch as that fat mortal relentlessly tore into the tiny child.

Harry stumbled backwards, falling painfully onto his ass. Feeling something wet on his face, he brought his hand up to his nose to wipe it away. He cried out in alarm when he found blood covering his hand. "What happened?" he croaked out, voice feeling raw and sore.

Panting, Loki collapsed onto the chair and dropped his head into his hands. It felt like Thor had tried to crack his skull open with Mjolnir. At hearing the boy cry out in distress, he lifted his head up, shocked to find a puddle of blood on the table dripping from his nose.

"You forced me to watch your memory," Loki answered, his voice not sounding much better than the child's.

"Oh my god, I'm so sorry." Harry cried. "I didn't know I..."

Loki held up his hand. "It's alright, child, I know that you didn't know what you were doing, that's why it was so painful for us."

"Now you see why my father can't find out about my magic? He will surely send me back there."

"You insult your father by thinking that he would ever send you back to that," Loki said sadly. "I may not like him, but your father is a good man."

"But I see how they look at you. How they hate and fear you because of your magic."

Loki snorted. "Child, it's not my magic they hate, it's me. I did some truly horribly things last time I was here, and I deserve their scorn. Your father would not think any different of you if he found out that you were almost as magically powerful as myself."

"Please don't tell him," Harry begged, crawling to the god and kneeling at his feet. "Please, I beg you not tell him. I will do anything if you promise not to tell him." Harry reached out and laid a trembling hand on the god's thigh.

Loki jumped up and flew across the room like someone had burned him. He couldn't believe that the child was offering himself for his silence. "I am not a disgusting child rapist," Loki snarled in disgust. "If my silence means that much to you, then you have it...on two conditions."

Harry quickly got to his feet. "Anything, I will do anything you say." A little voice in the back of his head was screaming that he had to be careful around Loki, but he was too desperate to care. No one could find out about what he was. In the short time that he had been here, he had come to care a great deal for everyone in the tower, maybe even love them, and it would kill him to lose them.

"First, you will stop maiming your own body!" Loki said, glaring at Harry's arms.

Gasping, Harry looked down at his arms fully expecting to see his scars, but was shocked when he saw nothing but flawless skin. "How?"

Loki snickered. "I am a god, I can see through your foolish glamours."

Harry bit his lip. "I will try, but I have been doing it for so long. I don't know if I can just up and stop."

Loki nodded his head in understanding. This child had been hurt worse than any child he had ever encountered. Children were cherished on Asgard, and those caught harming them were banished or imprisoned.

"If you ever feel the urge to hurt yourself, then come to me. We can either talk or I can conjure up a dummy for you to take your frustrations out on."

Harry thought for a moment. "I guess I can try that, but please understand if I have some slip-ups."

Loki nodded his head, fully expecting the child to have many slip-ups. "Second, you will allow me to train you. You are very powerful, and if you don't learn how to control your magic, you could seriously hurt someone or yourself. You also need to learn that your magic is nothing to fear."

"Isn't there a way that you could just bind my magic, take it away forever?" Harry asked in a small, hopeful voice.

Loki looked at the child like he had just sprouted an extra head. "Even if I could take away your magic, I wouldn't. Your magic is a part of you, every bit as much as your arms, legs or head. To take away your magic, it like cutting off your head. There is a reason that magic gifted you, and I won't take that gift away. Let me teach you how to embrace your magic, make it one with you."

Harry lowered his head in defeat, he had been really hoping that Loki could make him normal. "I will allow you to teach me if you promise not to tell anyone that I am a wizard."

Loki held out his hand. "Deal."

Loki's hand reminded him of a snake...ready to strike at any minute. Taking a big reassuring breath, Harry reached out and shook the god's hand.

Loki smiled at the child. "Excellent, we start tomorrow."


	6. Chapter 6

I do not own Harry Potter or Avengers.

Wah, finally an update. Not as long as my other chapters, but at least it's not painfully short.

Please review :)

*** HP

"Hey, kiddo, do you want to help me out in my workshop today?" Tony asked, reaching out to pluck another blueberry pancake off the plate. He had already eaten eight of them, but who the hell was keeping count?

Harry gave a quick and subtle glance at Loki, then looked back at his father. "Yeah, that would be great, but first I want to write a letter to my friends."

Tony grinned happily at his son. "Sweet, maybe we can make you a mini Iron Man suit."

"Tony," Bruce groaned. "I don't think that's a very good idea."

"I agree with Bruce on this one," Pepper said, scowling at her employer. "Harry is only fourteen, he could get seriously hurt."

Tony rolled his eyes. "Honestly, like I would make him a real Iron Man suit, lasers and all. Besides, he will be fifteen next month."

"Isn't that what you had planned?" Pepper snapped.

Tony looked at his son and gave him a wink. "Maybe," he said with a smirk. "Come on Pep, I was ten when I made my first laser, Harry needs to catch up."

Pepper picked up her knife and pointed it at Tony. "Tony, so help me...if you even think..."

Tony held up his hands, laughing. "Easy, Pepper, I get it...no lasers."

Throwing down her napkin, Pepper stood up. "Thank you. Now, some of us actually have to work." Turning to Harry, she gave him a soft smile. "Breakfast was incredible, thank you. I will see you this evening, Harry."

"Bye, Pepper," Harry said shyly.

Pepper looked sternly back at Tony. "No lasers, Tony, I mean it."

Tony took his finger and crossed it over his heart. "Cross my heart, Pepper. No lasers."

Tony watched as Pepper left then waited a minute or two. Smirking, he looked back at his son. "She didn't say anything about missiles."

"Tony," Bruce groaned in exasperation.

"Fine," Tony cried dramatically. "We will just make a plain old boring Iron Man suit with no cool lasers or wicked missiles. Are you happy, mother?"

Dropping his head so his hair was hiding his face, Harry started laughing. He loved this...he loved the banter, the joking, the friendship, the family...he never wanted to lose this.

"Laugh now, Little Chef, but you're going to be the only kid on the playground wearing a laserless, missileless, Iron Man suit," Tony teased.

Harry looked up at his dad, eyes sparkling with happiness and love. "That's alright, I don't need lasers or missiles. I think it will be great just spending the day with you building something."

Tony's heart squeezed almost painfully in his chest. How could he come to love someone so fast? If he would have been asked a few weeks ago if he could handle being a father, he would have said 'hell no.' Kids were something that he never wanted and he had always been careful with his affairs. Almost weekly there was someone claiming to be his love child, but he had never been worried. He knew that there was no way that their claims would prove true, he had always been too careful. He still didn't know how Harry came to be, but he was damn glad that he did. Even though it had only been a short time, he couldn't imagine his life without Harry in it. He knew that Harry had a mountain of issues to work through, but he planned to be by his side every step of the way.

"Alright then, get those letters written than meet me in my workshop." Tony said shoveling the last of his delicious pancakes into his mouth.

"Go ahead, Harry," Bruce encouraged. "We got clean up duty."

Nodding his head and glancing again in Loki's direction, Harry got up and left the table. He hated lying to his father, but he had promised Loki that he would work with him this morning. He knew that even if he could, Loki wouldn't take his magic away from him. He was desperate that his father and the rest of the Avengers would never find out about his magic, and he would do anything and everything that Loki asked of him to keep him quiet.

***HP

"Are you sure Jarvis can't hear us?"

"Don't worry, little Mage, I made it so he can't see or hear anything that's going on in here." Loki reassured for the third time.

Harry released the breath that he had been holding. He didn't want his father to know what was going on between him and Loki. If Tony knew that he was alone in his room with Loki, then he was sure to automatically jump to the wrong conclusion.

Picking up Harry's wand, Loki twirled it around his finger then threw the useless piece of wood onto the bed and turned to face the nervous boy. "You don't need that foolish stick to control your magic. Your magic comes from here," he said, poking him in the chest.

"Everyone in the wizarding world has a wand though, even Dumbledore, and he's the most powerful wizard since Merlin."

Shaking his head, Loki snorted. "Those mere mortals may need a wand, but you do not. You, child, are more powerful than your great Dumbledore and Merlin."

"I'm mortal though, so I need a wand," Harry stubbornly protested.

Loki bent down and started rooting through the boy's trunk, pulling out his books on magic. "You're scared to be different," he said, leafing through useless book then chucking it onto the bed with the wand. "You would be happy being average."

Harry shrugged his shoulders. "Not average, just normal," he answered softly.

"Why would you want to be normal?" Loki sneered in disgust.

"People fear those that are different and they lash out and hurt them."

"Tell me, child, do you think that your relatives would have treated you better, would have loved even if you weren't magical?" Loki asked giving all his attention to Harry.

"Yes," Harry answered brokenly. "They hated me because I wasn't normal, because I had magic."

Loki looked at the boy in pity. "Your uncle is a sick bastard, and what he did to you had nothing to do with your magic. Yes, that may be why he originally hated you, but that is not what drove him to do the sick and perverted things that he did. Has not your uncle hurt other boys, boys that you consider normal and have no magic?"

Harry didn't say anything, just turned and looked out the window. For some reason he needed to believe that his relatives would have loved him if he wasn't a wizard. He needed to believe that it was the fear of his magic that caused his relatives to hurt him. Uncle Vernon had always said that he was going to beat the freakishness out of him.

Loki knew that Harry wasn't ready to hear the truth. He blamed his magic for every horrible thing that had ever happened to him. "Why do your hands sometimes tremble?" he asked, changing the subject. He had noticed on a couple of occasions that the boy lost control of his hands and they started shaking almost violently.

Harry shoved the hand that wasn't in the cast into his pocket so Loki couldn't see how it shook. "It's nothing," he mumbled.

Loki had to bite his tongue to keep from snapping at the boy. It wasn't his fault that he didn't know how to trust. "I will be the judge of that, child. Now, I can see the remnants of dark magic on you. What happened?"

Harry didn't like to think about the third task, he still had horrible nightmares about it. It didn't help that he didn't have anyone to help him through it, to tell him that it wasn't his fault. "A few weeks ago a powerful dark lord was resurrected using my blood and he cast the Cruciatus curse on me multiple times. The Cruciatus curse is a pain curse, there is no pain worse than it, and if you are held under it long enough, you will go insane. I still get occasional tremors from the damage done to my nerves."

Loki approached Harry. "You said he used your blood?" Slowly, so he didn't startle him, Loki raised his hand and a feint white glow appeared. "Relax," he said when Harry tensed and looked ready to bolt. "It's just a medical scan."

Harry stared at Loki's hand in fear, but despite his instincts screaming at him to flee, he remained standing and facing the god. "The ritual called for bone of the father, flesh of the servant and blood of the enemy forcibly taken." he explained.

Loki didn't like the results that he was getting from the scan. According to it, Harry should have died when he was fifteen months old. The only reason why he had lived despite everything he had suffered was because his magic had kept him alive. If Harry would have been born with average magic, he wouldn't have lived to see sixteen months old.

"You're fourteen years old, how can you already be an enemy to a powerful dark magic user?"

"It's a long story?" Harry shivered uncontrollably when Loki's magic wrapped around his body and sank into him.

"Don't fight it," Loki said gently, concentrating on repairing as much damage as he could. The damage to the nerves was extensive, he was surprised that Harry wasn't shaking more than what he was.

"Wh-What are you doing?" Harry asked shakily. He didn't know how he felt about Loki's magic, on one hand it was warm and comforting, but on the other hand it was wild and dangerous feeling.

"I'm going to heal the nerve damage then correct the damage from the abuse and neglect."

"No," Harry cried out in panic trying to break away from Loki and his magic.

Reaching out, Loki grabbed Harry by the arm. "I won't hurt you, you foolish child." Loki was about at the end of his patience.

"No, it's not that," Harry cried, struggling to break Loki's grip. "If you heal me then they will know that something isn't right. You can heal the nerve damage from the curse, but not the rest."

Loki released the bony arm and pinched the bridge of nose in frustration. "You want me to leave you with wrongly healed and weak bones, scars over the majority of your body, including your anal passage, internal organ damage and a long list of other ailments from the hell you suffered at the hands of your relatives?"

"Yes, that's exactly what I want," Harry whispered, finally losing the battle against his tears. "Please, they can't know."

Loki didn't know what to say or do, he had never met anyone so afraid of their magic. "Child, some of the damage done to your internal organs will cause you serious health issues in the near future and will probably greatly shorten your life span. The wrongly healed bones are going to start causing you considerable pain. Is that what you want?"

"Yes," Harry answered softly. "I-I can't lose Tony...I can't lose my dad."

"You would willingly live a sick and painful life just to have a father?"

Harry nodded his head. "You don't understand, you had a caring father and loving family."

"I was adopted," Loki snapped angrily. "They lied to me."

Harry looked at Loki and laughed, but it was a laugh that bordered on insanity. "Did your father starve you? Did he beat and rape you? Did he whore you out to his boss just so he could get a promotion? Did he lock you in a small cupboard under the stairs for days at a time with no food or water, not even access to a bathroom? How about your mother, did she pour hot cooking grease down your back? Did she ignore your father when he made you suck his cock under the dining room table while they were eating dinner?"

Harry walked to the door, tears falling down his face. "If the worse thing your father did was take you in and give you a loving family, treat you like one of his own, then you don't have a right to judge me. I'm done for today." Harry turned and left his bedroom, slamming the door hard behind him.

Loki stood in the middle of the room feeling like Thor had just hit him with a lightning bolt. Odin may have treated him a bit differently than Thor, but it was only subtle things. Odin and Frigga loved him and gave him everything as a child. Even now Frigga doted on him despite all the evil things he has done. He didn't know what it was like to grow up without the love of a father and a mother. Would he be as desperate as Harry for a family if Odin would have left him behind on Jotunheim?

Looking around the bare room, Loki picked up and returned the wand and books to the trunk and magically sealed it. He knew that Harry would be devastated if anyone accidentally stumbled upon them and figured out his secret. He would give the boy the rest of the day, then try again tomorrow.

***HP

Harry was shaking uncontrollably and it didn't have anything to do with his nerve damage. He couldn't believe what he had just said to Loki. Loki had a way of getting under his skin and making him lose his temper.

Storming into the kitchen, he went directly to the knife drawer and started rooting around. He needed to cut himself, to watch himself bleed. He needed to release everything that he was feeling, and he could only do that by cutting.

"Stupid god of michief," Harry muttered under his breath. He couldn't use his regular knife and his bathroom because Loki was still in his room. Grabbing a sharp boning knife, he took a seat at the table and rolled up his sleeve. He wasn't worried about getting caught, Tony was in his workshop, Clint and Steve were at SHIELD headquarters, Thor was in the training room, Bruce was in his lab, Pepper at her office and he didn't give a shit where Loki was. He was desperate to feel the cold blade at his skin and he couldn't wait a minute longer. Closing his eyes and taking a deep breath, he pressed the tip of the blade into his skin.

"What the hell do you think you are doing?"

Harry's eyes flew open and the knife clattered to the floor. Standing in the doorway was a very pretty red headed female with blue-green eyes and dressed entirely in black leather. She had an athletic build and gave off a vibe of being someone dangerous and not to be messed with.

Wide eyed, Harry shook his head. "Nothing, I wasn't doing anything."

Natasha narrowed her eyes and glared at the unknown boy. "Bull shit, kid." she snarled. "I'm not fucking stupid, you were getting ready to cut yourself."

Harry vigorously shook his head no. "No I wasn't, honest. I was just goofing around."

Natasha bent down and picked up the knife. Expertly flipping it around in her hand, she held if out to the boy, hilt first. "Go ahead then, let's see you do it."

Harry stared at the knife in equal parts desperation and fear. He was craving the bite of the knife and the sight of his beautiful red blood pouring down his arm, but he knew that there was no way that the red head would let him go through with it. Even if she did, he didn't think that it would calm him the same way it did when he was alone.

Angrily Natasha slammed the knife down on the table making the boy jump. She could see how badly the boy wanted to take the knife and use it. "Why?" she demanded.

Harry just sat there blankly staring at the knife. "It wasn't what it looked like," he answered softly. "I saw a news segment on cutting and I..."

"Got curious," Natasha snapped. "Kid, I wasn't born yesterday. I saw how you were looking at the knife when I was holding it out to you. Someone who has never cut themselves would look at a knife with such desperate longing." Rolling up her sleeve, Natasha thrust her scarred arm under the boy's nose. "I should know, I have been there."

Heart pounding in his chest, Harry slowly took his eyes off the woman's arm and looked up into her eyes. He knew who she was, recognized her from the news footage about the alien invasion. The pissed off woman was Natasha Romanoff, the Black Widow. "Please don't tell," he begged.

Sighing, Natasha picked up the knife and put it in the sink. Returning to the boy, she took a seat at the table across from him. "What's your name, kid?"

Rolling down his sleeve and nervously fiddling with it, Harry answered in a small voice. "Harry Potter, mam."

"Oh please, kid," Natasha snorted, "don't call me mam. You can call me Natasha, or Tasha for short."

Harry gave Tasha a small smile. "Please don't tell anyone about what you walked in on," he pleaded.

"First, and I don't mean to sound rude, but who are you? When I left, there was no teenage boy's living in the tower."

"Well, you see," Harry answered, blushing a bit, "it seems that I'm Tony Stark's son."

Eyes popping out of her head, Natasha leaned back in her chair and started chuckling. "Oh that's priceless, Stark's a daddy. How's he doing so far?" she asked curiously. Never in a million years did she picture Stark being a father. The man was load, obnoxious, self centered, stuck up and would screw anything that battered their eyes at him.

"He... He's great," Harry answered honestly. "He's done more for me than anyone else and he seems to truly care about me."

"Wow," Natasha said, unable to hide her shock. "Well, I'm glad that he's stepping up. Now onto the serious stuff." Natasha leaned forward and looked the boy directly in the eyes. "How long have you been cutting? I will warn you only once not to lie to me. I have been trained well and I can easily detect a lie. I am also very good at getting information, it's kind of my job."

Harry swallowed the lump that was in his throat. He had never told anyone about his cutting and he didn't want to start now. It was bad enough that Loki knew about it. Shrugging his shoulders, he looked down at his hands. "I started when I was eight, so about six years, almost seven."

Natasha whistled. "Damn kid, you started at eight? What the hell could have been so bad in an eight year old's life to cause him to turn to cutting?" Natasha also couldn't believe that the small, waif like boy sitting in front of her was fourteen years old.

"Everything," Harry answered softly, biting hard on his bottom lip.

Natasha could see the pain in the boy's eyes and she didn't want to push him. Obviously something already had him upset enough today that he was resorting to cutting. "Let me see your arm," she demanded, holding out her hands.

"What?" Harry gasped, yanking his arms off the table and hiding them under it.

"I want to see your arm, I need to assess the damage." When Harry didn't move, Natasha continued. "If you want me to be quiet, then I need to see what I'm dealing with. I'm not just going to walk away like I never saw you gouging a knife into your arm. I'm going to help you work through this, help you find another outlet."

"Why... Why would you want to help me? You don't even know me."

"Because," Natasha answered sadly. "I wish someone would have helped me."

Looking across the table, Harry could see that Natasha meant what she said. Despite her honesty, he still didn't want to show her his arm. Unfortunately, he was scared that she would go running to Tony if he didn't, and that was the last thing that he wanted. Closing his eyes, he canceled the glamours then rolled up his sleeve and held his unbroken arm out to her.

Natasha took the too thin arm and silently inspected it. She was horrified at the amount of scarring, and she didn't miss the fresh, not even twenty four hours old, cuts. Clearing her throat, she looked back into those mesmerizing green eyes. "I take it your other arm looks the same?"

Harry nodded his head, averting his eyes from her intense ones.

Nodding her head, she released his arm then got up and went to the fridge. "Where the hell did all this food come from?" she gasped, grabbing the plate of turkey and some mayo. She had never seen the refrigerator stocked with so much food, and all of it homemade.

Harry shyly scratched the back of his neck. "Uhm, I kind of like to cook."

Natasha moaned when she took a bite of the cold turkey. "This is really good. I think I'm gonna love having you around, kid." Grabbing some bread, she went about making a large turkey sandwich.

"Well now I see what's keeping you from joining me in my workshop, a hot red head!"

Natasha rolled her eyes at Tony. "Stuff it, Stark. You could stand to take some lessons in manners from your son."

Chuckling, Tony plopped in the seat next to Harry, affectionately rubbing his hair. "He really is sweet, isn't he? So, Tash, what do you think of my mini me?"

Natasha couldn't get over the resemblance of the pair. She had thought that Harry looked a lot like Tony, but it was scary seeing them sitting side by side. Harry was definitely more on the pretty and feminine side than Tony though. "I don't know, the two of you may look a lot alike, but he doesn't have your obnoxious streak. I think I need to see a DNA before I'll believe it."

Tony threw his head back and laughed. "You got me there. So what have you two been discussing, did I miss anything?"

Harry looked fearfully at Natasha, begging her with his eyes to not tell Tony about the cutting. It was bad enough that Tony knew about the abuse and the rapes, he didn't want his dad to know that he was even more fucked up.

Natasha knew that she should tell Tony about the cutting, but Harry seemed like he needed someone to trust. The last she needed when she had issues with cutting, was a parent hovering over her. Granted, she only cut for a few months, but she figured she could be more of a help to Harry if she kept his secret and helped him kick the habit. She still planned to strongly encourage Harry to go to Tony and let him help him.

"Self defense," Natasha said, giving Harry a wink. "I figured with him living at Stark Tower and being Tony Stark's only son, it might be a good idea for him to learn how to defend himself. It will also give him a good outlet for things that may be bothering him." Natasha raised one eyebrow at Harry waiting to see what he thought.

Tony turned to Harry and gave him a questioning look. "Is that what you want, Little Chef? Personally, I think it's an excellent idea. You have all these highly trained hero's at your disposal, you should learn what you can from them. I admit, it would make me feel better knowing that you could defend yourself."

Harry couldn't believe that Natasha was going to keep his secret, he also couldn't believe that she suggested him learning how to fight. He was all for learning how to defend himself, but he was terrified at the thought of being in close contact with the guys. Yes, he was learning to trust them, but that didn't mean that he wanted to get all hot and sweaty with them. He definitely didn't want them touching him.

"Only you," Harry said softly, looking up at Natasha. "For now anyway." He could handle being with Natasha, she was a woman and a woman had never sexually assaulted him.

"Yeah... Yeah," Tony said, sadly understanding why Harry only wanted Natasha to teach him. Harry was scared of men and there was no way he could handle being in close contact with them, at least not yet. "What do you say, Tash, up to teaching the next generation of Stark's?"

Natasha looked questioningly at Tony. Why would Harry want her to teach him when Steve and Clint were available?

Tony gave a subtle shake of his head and mouthed 'later'. They were going to have to fill Natasha in on Harry's past.

"Well, I would be honored," Natasha said, turning her attention back to Harry. "And don't think I'm going to take it easy on you just because your arm is in a cast."

***HP

"It's true," Dumbledore said gravely. "The Dursely's moved the same day that they picked Harry up from Kings Cross."

"I told you something wasn't right," Sirius raged. "It's now been weeks, we'll never find Harry in America."

Dumbledore held up his hand to delay all the questions that started to get fired at him. "We will find Harry, have faith. I found out that his relatives moved to California. Harry is still safe and protected by the the blood wards. We will find him and make sure that he is safe and returning to Hogwarts in September, then we will leave him with his family until his birthday."

Sirius slammed his hand down on the table. "Harry does not like living with his family and he isn't safe living so far away. We will find Harry and bring him back here to Grimmauld Place."

"Sirius," Dumbledore sighed. "Harry is..."

"My godson, Albus, and he belongs with me."

"Maybe you should have thought of that before abandoning him and running off after that rat," Severus sneered.

"Enough," Dumbledore said sternly. "Sirius, you are in no condition to look after a teenage boy, especially one that is number one on Voldemort's want list."

"I was the best damn Auror that Moody ever trained," Sirius protested. "I can keep my godson safe."

"Like you did when the two of you were swarmed by Dementors?" Dumbledore reminded him. "Sirius, I'm not doubting your love for Harry, but he is safer with his aunt and uncle."

"He's not," Fred mumbled.

"Fred," George scolded.

"No, George, we can no longer keep quiet. They are hurting Harry, and what kind of friends would we be if we kept our mouths shut and let them continue. Georgie, with Harry in America, we can no longer owl healing potions to him."

"What are the two of you talking about?" Sirius growled, sounding much like his animagus form.

"Boys," Dumbledore warned. "I understand that you care for young Harry, but sneaking out and going to his home was not only dangerous for the two of you, but also for Harry. Now, I thank you for informing us about Harry's move, but I must insist that you go to your room while us adults work this out.

"Sit down," Molly snapped when her twin boy's stood up to leave. "Albus Dumbledore, Fred and George are my boys and I would appreciate it if you would remember that." Molly turned to her boys. "Fred, please finish what you were going to say."

"Molly, I really must insist..."

"Albus, I suggest that you don't finish that sentence," Molly warned, glaring at the headmaster. "Must I remind you that you are the headmaster at their school, not their father. Now, they feel that they have a reason to be concerned about a child that I think of like a son, and I would like to hear what they have to say."

Fred and George high fived each other under the table. Their mother may be one hundred percent loyal to Dumbledore, but she didn't take any shit from him.

"When Harry was twelve," Fred started. "We caught him showering in the locker room."

"Harry never showered in front of us," George added.

"He also never showered in front of any of us," Ron said thoughtfully. "He always took his showers late at night, or early in the morning before any of us woke."

"That's because of the scars," Fred said, looking to his twin for support. It killed him spilling Harry's secret, but they were scared for him. They knew that what Harry suffered at the hands of his uncle was more than just a few slaps about the head.

"And the bones," George added. "Harry is so skinny. I have never seen anyone who's every bone sticks out the way Harry's does."

Fred snorted. "That's what happens when you have been starved your entire life."

Sirius looked to the twins, all color draining from his face. He knew that Harry wasn't happy with his relatives, but he never suspected that it was that bad. "Scars?" he asked, needing to know exactly what they were talking about.

"His back," Fred said softly. "His uncle whips him with his belt or a whip. His back is covered in years worth of scars."

"Then there are the bruises and the broken bones he always has after leaving his relatives house," George added. "They beat him and starve him. Harry begged us not to tell anyone, so we have been secretly owling him potions, bandages and food."

Gasping, Molly covered her mouth with her hand. "Oh, that poor dear. He was always so shy and polite at the house, but I always found it strange that he would never sit on our furniture."

"That's because he wasn't allowed at his aunt's house," George admitted.

"Did you know?" Sirius growled, lunging to his feet and facing Dumbledore. "Did you know that my pup has been getting abused all these years?"

"Sirius you must understand..."

"Yes or no, old man," Sirius yelled.

Dumbledore knew that there was no way that he was going to get out of answering truthfully. "I had my suspicions," he answered gravely. "but you have to understand, Harry was far safer with his relatives protected behind the blood wards than he was anywhere else in the wizarding world. I couldn't risk a Death Eater getting their hands on him and raising him up to be one of them, or even possibly the next Dark Lord."

"Safer," Molly screeched, shaking in anger. "Broken bones, whip marks, malnourishment, how is that safer?"

"I told you they were the worst sort," Minerva reminded him bitterly. "What about Arabella? You said they she always reported back that Harry was happy and healthy."

Dumbledore winced, the last thing he wanted was both Molly and Minerva having a go at him. "Harry is very powerful, more so than what any of you know. I couldn't risk that kind of power falling into the hands of the dark. Yes, Arabella reported back to me that she suspected that Harry was being abused, but I had to leave him there for the greater good. They are Harry's relatives, they would never really hurt him. All children get spankings and sent to bed without dinner."

"For a week?" Fred yelled, tears falling from his eyes and visibly shaking.

George wrapped his arm around his brother and pulled him in to a comforting embrace. Not many knew it, but Fred was very sensitive. He had his suspicions that his twin had empathic abilities. "Harry once told us that his uncle locked him in the cupboard under the stairs for a week with no food or water. They didn't even let him out to use the bathroom, just gave him a bucket."

Sirius felt like he could throw up. He knew that Harry wasn't happy, hell, what kid agrees to move in with their escaped convict godfather minutes after meeting him? Glaring at Dumbledore, he pointed his finger at him and snarled. "We will find Harry, then you will stay the hell away from him. You purposely left him in an abusive home all for your fucking greater good. Well, no more. What makes the greater good more important than Harry's good? How have you have lived with yourself all this time knowing that you left a baby...an innocent boy, in a home where he was being hurt?"

"It wasn't easy," Dumbledore said sadly, "but it had to be done."

Kingsley sat back in his chair listening to everything in horror. He never had the chance to meet teen Harry Potter, but he had known him when he was a small babe. He had been good friends with James, they had went through the Auror academy together. He had visited the Potters after Harry had been born and Harry had been the first baby that he had ever held. He was such a sweet and beautiful little boy, James had even been worried because he never cried. He had his suspicions where Harry was at, or at least had an idea who knew where he was at, but he was going to keep his mouth shut, at least for now. He had thought it strange when Nick had contacted him a few days ago and started asking questions about Harry Potter, but he had assumed that SHIELD was just checking in on the wizarding world. No, he was going to pay a visit to his brother and find out what he knew about Harry before telling Sirius or Dumbledore. An hour ago he would have went running to Dumbledore without hesitation, but not after hearing what the old man had did to him.

***HP

"Are you sure that you don't want lasers? We don't have to tell Pepper, you know. What she don't know won't hurt her."

Harry held his arm out straight in front of him. He was wearing a gauntlet identical to the one on his father's suit. "I admit that it would be cool, but I don't need one."

Tony gasped. "Take that back, everyone needs a laser. Just think how much better the world be if everyone was walking around with a laser attached to their arm."

"Yeah, I don't think everyone having lasers at their disposal would make the world better," Harry giggled.

"Huh, well it made my life better," Tony pouted.

"This really is wicked," Harry said, flexing his fingers,

"You think that's awesome, wait until we get the rest finished and get you flying."

Harry dropped his arm in shock and stared at his dad with his mouth hanging open.

"That is if you're not afraid of heights," Tony quickly added, taking his shock for fear.

"No," Harry said, grinning from ear to ear. "I love being up high. I just didn't think my suit would actually fly. I had assumed that it was just for fun."

"Harry, Harry, Harry," Tony chanted, shaking his head back and forth. "Haven't you figured it out yet? I do everything big and over the top. Why the hell would I make you an a Iron Man suit and not have it fly? I'm still pouting over the lack of lasers and missiles."

"Wow," Harry said, raising his hand back out in front of him. "I can't wait to fly. This has really been fun. Thank you," he said sincerely.

"You're a natural at this, Little Chef. Before you know it, you will be building your own robots and AI systems."

"I don't know about that," Harry mumbled. "I've never been all that smart."

Tony put down the wrench then picked up a cloth and wiped the grease from his hands. "It's kind of hard to do good in school when you're not allowed to do better than your dumb as shit cousin."

"H-How did you know that?" Harry gasped.

"Harry, you went from teachers wanting to move you up a few grades, to lowest grades in the class in just a few short weeks. Your grades, no matter the subject, were always right below your cousin's. It wasn't hard to figure out." Tony explained.

Harry took off the gauntlet and placed it on the table. "How did you find out about my grades?" he asked, taking a few steps back away from his father.

Tony didn't want to upset his son, but there was no way that he was going to lie to him. "After you passed out, I had Jarvis dig up whatever he could on you and your horrid relatives."

"Why?" Harry asked, feeling sick to his stomach. He knew there wouldn't be much on him, especially after the age of eleven. Tony was the type that needed to know everything, and he wouldn't stop until he got what he wanted. He hated that they knew about the abuse and the rapes, but Tony couldn't find out about his magic.

"Hey, relax, kiddo," Tony said softly when he noticed that Harry was about to have a meltdown. "I didn't know anything about you, and you were close to dying. I had Jarvis find out what he could so we could help you. I didn't know if you were allergic to any medications or food, then when we saw the scars...well, you can imagine how we panicked."

"I-I'm sorry that I got upset," Harry said, lowering his head submissively. "It's just that..."

Tony placed his hand on Harry's shoulder, trying to ignore how he flinched at the contact. "Harry, I know that we haven't fully talked about your past, and I promise that I won't pressure you. I know that you lived a nightmare, but there is nothing that that bastard did, or made you do, that would change how I feel about you. You are the son that I never knew that I wanted, and now could never live without."

Harry wiped a tear from his face with a trembling hand. "I-I was s-six," his said, voice barely above a whisper.

Tony closed his eyes, swallowing the bile that had worked it's way up. He didn't have to ask Harry what he was talking about, unfortunately he knew.

Harry couldn't believe that he admitted that to his father, it just tumbled out before he could stop it. "Oh god, I'm gone be sick," he groaned, falling to his knees.

Tony quickly grabbed a trash can and thrust it in front of his son just in time for him to get sick in it. He desperately wanted to lose his stomach too, but for his son, he had to be strong. He knew that Harry had been young when the sexual abuse started, and despite the pictures showing a young Harry, he had hoped that he had been closer to nine or ten. Not that nine or ten was any better, but six was still a baby. At ten, he knew what sex was and he had lost his virginity at thirteen, but at six, he knew nothing about sex or the human body. A six year old should have been playing make-believe and watching cartoons, not suffering at the hands of sick, vile men. His son must have been terrified, confused and in immense amount of pain.

"Take deep breaths, now," Tony said soothingly, kneeling down next to Harry. He would have loved to have reached out and comforted him, but he knew that his touch was the last thing that Harry wanted.

Sobbing, Harry put his head between his legs and tried taking deep breaths. He knew that his father knew about the sexual abuse, but that didn't make it any easier to talk about it. It had been beat into him since as far back as he could remember that if he talked about it, he would be killed.

"Harry, there is nothing, and I mean nothing, that would ever make me change the way that I feel about you. I know that we have only been together for a short time, but there is nothing that I wouldn't do for you. Hell, I'm willing to go against Pepper and outfit your suit with lasers and missiles...and I'm terrified of that crazy read head."

Harry lifted his head up and gave his dad a watery smile. "Thank you," he whispered. "I-I'm not ready to talk about everything, but I promise that I will try. I'm so glad that I have you for a dad. Is... Is it alright if I call you dad?" he asked shyly.

Tony couldn't prevent the smile that lit up his entire face. "I would be honored if you called me dad...son."


End file.
